Dazzlings
by RJ.E-scope.DxC
Summary: Sunset Shimmer wished she was popular, and she became popular - and suddenly she wished she wasn't popular. Sunset faces a fate seemingly worse than death, and mysterious new kid Flash Sentry suggests she take matters into her own hands and use drain cleaner, Ich Lüge bullets, and adult ignorance to make the world a better place. But is his vision worth the cost?
1. Beautiful

__September 1__ _ _st__ _ _, 1989__

 _ _Dear Diary -__

 _ _I believe that I__ _'_ _ _m a good person. You know, I think that there's good in everyone. But here we are, first day of Senior Year, and I look around at these kids I've known my whole life and I ask myself -__

 ** _ _ **What happened?**__**

Sunset Shimmer closed her diary with a sigh. It was only lunch time, and already the familiar shouts of "Freak!" "Slut!" "Burnout!" "Bug eyes!" "Poser!" "Lard ass!" were echoing up and down the hallway of Canterlot High School. It was hard to believe that these were the same kids she'd run about with on the grade school playground. Kids who'd once been sweet and kind had changed into cruel teenagers - and high school had been the trigger. Canterlot High School was no regular school; oh no.

It was the Thunderdome with classrooms.

No one trusted anyone at CHS. If you put one toe out of line, you were as good as dead. If you were pretty or rich or athletic, you had to follow the rules of the kids at the very top of the high school hierarchy, but being ugly or brainy meant that you would be picked on, ruthlessly, every day for the entirety of your high school career. Sunset was lucky enough to be unremarkable in the eyes of the student body, as this meant she was generally left alone. She was still picked on by the Alpha Jocks, but certainly not as brutally as other kids were. She'd never been beaten up or had her property destroyed, but she'd often been forced to give up lunch money, and it was rare for her locker to be graffiti-free.

It was survivable, but unideal. But even this could change at any time; the more you didn't fight back, the more the bullies thought they could get away with.

All anyone could do to survive was count the days to graduation and hope that they weren't dead before it arrived. College would be __paradise__.

"Ow!"

In front of Sunset, a senior had tripped a sophomore girl over. The students all laughed at the poor girl in the hope that they wouldn't be the next victim. Sunset rushed to help the girl up. "Hey, are you OK?"

The girl glared at her and pushed her messy purple hair out of her face. "Get __away__ , nerd!" she snapped.

Sunset winced at the nickname, but scooted away with a sigh of "Oh, OK." As she headed towards the cafeteria, the shouts of "Homo!" echoed back to her, coupled with comments about the sophomore's dykey haircut. This, it seemed, was what had inspired the tripping.

 _ _One more year of high school, and then things will get better,__ Sunset reminded herself as she picked up a lunch tray. __As soon as I get my letter from Hoofard. Then I can blow this town. Go some place with ivy-covered walls and smokey French cafés. And stop dreaming of setting this hellhole on fire.__ The feeling of her tray being smacked out of her hands and the clatter as it hit the floor snapped her out of her reverie. A smug tanned face grinned back at her. "Ooooooooooops," it grinned lecherously.

Sunset groaned. Just her luck. It was none other than tall, green-haired Timber Spruce, entering his third year as linebacker for the Canterlot Wondercolts (and eighth year of smacking lunch trays and being a huge dick) with his own special kind of finesse.

"What did you say to me, skank?!" Timber demanded, and Sunset realised she'd voiced her thoughts.

"Um, nothing," she gulped, pulling her jacket and scarf around herself protectively. Timber grunted and walked away. Sunset bent to pick up her tray, but crashed heads with someone who'd had the same idea. She stumbled and landed on her butt, looked up at her accidental assailant, and grinned delightedly.

"Hey Twilight!"

The bespectacled girl smiled back. "Hey!"

Twilight Sparkle had been Sunset's best friend practically since they were born. She was a cheerful, geeky girl with a love of ponies and a huge heart, but unfortunately that wasn't what helped you survive at a school like Canterlot.

Twilight helped Sunset up. "We still on for movie night tonight?"

"Yeah, you're on Jiffy Pop detail," Sunset said, tucking her red curly hair behind her ears.

Twilight beamed. "I rented __The Princess Bride__!"

"What, again?" Sunset chuckled. "Haven't you seen that, like, twenty times now?"

Twilight shrugged serenely. "What can I say? I'm a sucker for a happy ending."

"Twilight Dorkle! It's been too long!" a boy's voice boomed aggressively, far too close for comfort. Twilight turned to face a tall,muscular boy with curly blue hair: Tornado Twister, quarterback and the smartest guy on the football team - __which,__ Sunset thought privately to herself, _ _was a lot like being the tallest dwarf__.

Tornado leered at poor Twilight, and smacked the lunch tray out of her hands. He and Timber weren't exactly original when it came to pranks. Sunset should have been used to it by this point, but as Twilight miserably folded in on herself and Tornado gloated, she saw red.

"Hey! Pick that up! Right now!" Sunset snapped.

Tornado paused and turned slowly towards her. "I'm sorry, are you actually talking to me?" Timber materialized out of nowhere to stand next to his friend.

"My buddy Tornado here asked you a question."

Sunset glanced around, and realised that the entire cafeteria had ground to a halt to watch the confrontation. She'd backed herself into an inescapable corner. Sunset took a deep breath. "Yes, I am," she said boldly. "What gives you the right to pick on my friend? Look at you! You're a high-school has-been waiting to happen. A future gas station attendant."

Tornado blinked slowly. He seemed stuck for a reply. Sunset winced as he leaned closer, his nose practically touching her own, and raised a finger to point at her chin.

"You have a zit right there."

The cafeteria erupted with laughter. Sunset snatched the tray off the floor and stalked away to her normal table; the one next to the bins. Twilight followed her. "That was really brave of you, Sunset. Thanks for sticking up for me."

"No problem," Sunset groaned as she realised that in her desperation to escape from Timber and Tornado, she'd forgotten to actually get lunch. Twilight offered her half of her own sandwich and Sunset took it gratefully, eating one-handedly while scribbling in her diary with the other.

 _ _Dear Diary -__

 _ _Why?__

 ** _ _ **Why?**__**

 ** _ _ **WHY?!**__**

She could practically hear the other students asking the same thing. It was all over their faces. Micro Chips, one of Twilight's fellow science nerds, wondering why everyone hated him. Scootaloo, the sophomore who'd been tripped in the hallway, wondering why she didn't fight back. Twilight, gazing longingly at Timber, wondering why he wouldn't date her. Timber, wondering why he'd knocked Sunset's tray out of her hands. Even Twister, wondering why he acted like such a creep.

Suddenly the cafeteria door swung open, and a collective hush fell over the student body. Three girls entered, shoulders thrown back, haughty expressions on their faces. Their high heels clicked on the lino and their long glossy hair swished perfectly.

They were the Dazzlings.

Like every high school, there were the popular girls. Popular girls tended to be pretty OR rich OR mean; the Dazzlings were all of these things.

Dressed in yellow was Sonata Dusk, the Head Cheerleader; tall, athletic, and dumber than a pile of rocks, but she was hot and promiscuous and her father was loaded from selling engagement rings.

Then there was Aria Blaze, who wore green and ran the yearbook. She had no discernible personality, but her mother had paid for the breast implants that kept her perched at the top of the social food-chain.

Well, almost at the top.

That spot was reserved for Adagio Dazzle. The Red Queen. The almighty.

She was a __mythic__ bitch.

As cruel as they were, Sunset couldn't deny that the Dazzlings were special. Seemingly made of solid Teflon, they were the only students in the whole of Canterlot who were never bothered or harassed. And though she hated to admit it to herself, Sunset would have given anything to be like them.

They were perfect. Everyone, boys and girls alike, wanted them as either a friend or a fuck. Some, like Twilight, wished they would be nicer, and others wanted to do horrible things to them in revenge for the torment they'd endured at the hands of the three girls, but the sentiment still stood.

You could have literally kidnapped a Dazzling and be photographing her naked in an abandoned warehouse with the intention of leaving her tied up for the rats, and you'd still wish you could've dated her, or at least sat at her table. Sitting at the Dazzlings' table meant that you'd be Noticed.

Half an hour later, the lunch bell rang, and Sunset waved goodbye to Twilight before darting into the girls' bathroom. Just her luck, Adagio and Sonata were standing in front of the mirror, reapplying lip gloss and fixing their hair. A loud retching from within a cubicle told her that Aria was there too, getting reacquainted with today's lunch.

As Aria gagged over the toilet, Adagio snorted loudly and derisively. "Grow __up__ , Aria, bulimia is so '87."

Aria ignored her. "Sonata, I need a mint."

Sonata tossed her long blue hair over one shoulder and began brushing it fiercely. "What you __need__ , Aria, is to see a doctor."

Aria groaned loudly. "I __hate__ my doctor! He smells like Kraft Mac N Cheese!"

The door swung open again, and Ms Cheerilee stood in it, glaring sternly at the Dazzlings. She hadn't noticed Sunset. "Aah, Adagio and Sonata." There was yet another loud retch followed by a dull __splosh__ , and Ms Cheerilee grimaced. "And Aria. Perhaps you three didn't hear the bell over all the vomiting? You're late for class."

Adagio scowled at Ms Cheerilee. "Aria wasn't feeling well! We're __helping__ her." Privately, Sunset didn't really think that what Adagio was doing counted as 'helping', but she kept silent and instead began scribbling a hurried note in her diary. Ms Cheerilee tutted at Adagio.

"Not without a hall pass, you're not. Week's detention."

Sunset neatly tore the page out of her diary. "Actually, Ms Cheerilee, all four of us are out on a hall pass," she said loudly, handing the note to the astounded teacher, who probably hadn't even noticed her until then. "Yearbook committee."

Ms Cheerilee glared at the note, taking in what appeared to be Principal Celestia's handwriting okaying the absences of Adagio Dazzle, Aria Blaze, Sonata Dusk and Sunset Shimmer. "I see all four of you are listed," she eventually snapped. "Hurry up and get where you're going." She handed the hall pass to Adagio, who offered her a pseudo-charming smile, and left them alone in the bathroom.

Adagio examined the note and gave a low whistle. "This is an excellent forgery," she said approvingly. She looked up at Sunset and narrowed her eyes. " _ _Who__ are you?"

Sunset found herself stuttering. She may have disliked Adagio heartily, but she was nonetheless in awe of her as much as the rest of the student body. "Uh, Sunset. Sunset Shimmer." And then - "I crave a boon." She wasn't sure what had possessed her to say it, but this would probably the only time the Dazzlings would look at her without animosity. This could be her only shot.

Adagio's eyes narrowed. "What boon?" She pronounced each word slowly and carefully, taking the time to roll the letters around her mouth like bubblegum.

"Uh…" Sunset could feel her hands shaking. "Let me sit at your table at lunch. Just once, no talking necessary. If people think that you guys tolerate me then they'll leave me alone." Adagio showed all signs of preparing to interrupt, so Sunset pressed on. "Before you answer, I also do report cards, permission slips and absence notes." It was a talent that Sunset was secretly extremely proud of. She could forge anyone and everyone's handwriting after only seeing it once. She rarely used it other than for bogus permission slips to skip gym and occasionally school when she wanted to see a movie, but this was the first time anyone had complemented her on it.

Aria emerged from the cubicle, wiping her mouth with the back of her hand. She glanced at Sunset. "How about prescriptions?"

Sunset was about to answer that she'd never forged a prescription before, but she was fairly certain that she could, when Adagio interrupted with a sharp, "Shut up, Aria."

Aria grimaced. "Sorry, Adagio."

Adagio turned back to Sunset Shimmer, who was feeling increasingly glad for her floor-length skirt, as it meant that the Dazzlings couldn't see her knees knocking together. The Queen Bee gazed intensely at Sunset's face, before saying, "Y'know, for a greasy little nobody…" Sunset braced herself for what would doubtless be Adagio ripping her and her request to shreds. "…you __do__ have good bone structure."

Sunset's eyes widened in surprise. That was not what she'd expected at __all__.

Sonata nodded in agreement. "And a symmetrical face." She drew an imaginary line with her finger from the centre of Sunset's forehead to the bottom of her chin. "If I took a meat cleaver down the centre of your skull, I'd have matching halves." She looked seriously into Sunset's eyes. "That's __very__ important."

Sunset barely had time to look shocked at this morbid statement before Aria chimed in, "Of course, you __could__ stand to lose a __few__ pounds," and Sunset wrapped her arms protectively around her stomach. Sure she had a little chub, but it had never bothered her until now. Then again, everyone knew that Aria was obsessed with having a perfect figure.

Adagio nodded thoughtfully. "Y'know, this could be beautiful. Mascara, maybe some lip gloss, and then we're on our way." She turned to Aria. "Get this girl some blush. And Sonata, I need your brush. We can take her shopping for some new clothes after school."

"Why wait?" Sunset asked breathlessly. "I can get us out of school now, no questions asked." She twiddled her pen between her fingers for emphasis.

The Dazzlings all grinned delightedly. "Let's make her beautiful," Adagio smirked, then to Sunset, "OK?"

Sunset nodded fervently. "OK!"

The second day of school began much in the same way the first had. As the halls filled, Tornado shoved Micro Chips away from him with a snarl of "Out of my way, geek!"

Poor Micro Chips shook in terror. "I don't want any trouble!" he begged. "Please don't hurt me!"

Timber glared at him over Tornado's shoulder. "You're gonna die at 3PM, dork."

Micro Chips backed away, bumping into Rarity and Pinkie Pie - two girls nowhere near as popular as the Dazzlings, but popular enough to get invited to the right parties and be hit on by jocks. "Don't you dare touch me!" Rarity snapped.

"Yeah, get away, pervert!" Pinkie agreed.

Micro Chips darted away as fast as he could, begging God to let him know what he'd ever done to deserve this. Who could survive this? It was inescapable. It felt like he was dying.

He was pulled from his hurried conversation with God by the sound of the hallway going silent. Wondering what could have possibly caused this, he turned to face the doors. Ms Cheerilee's voice cut through the silence like a knife through butter: "Who's that with the Dazzlings?"

Sure enough, Adagio, Aria and Sonata were standing in the doorway - only someone else was standing with them. A fourth Dazzling, dressed all in blue, red-haired with blonde highlights and wide turquoise eyes. A __babe__.

Whispers as to who the new girl might be buzzed quietly up and down the corridor, but the answer came in the form of Twilight's shocked voice cutting through the crowd.

" _ _Sunset?__ "

Sure enough, the girl standing confidently next to the Dazzlings was none other than Sunset Shimmer. She was carrying herself differently, her shoulders back instead of slumped forwards, and she looked taller - she'd exchanged her normal clumpy boots for a pair of patent black kitten heels. Her hair was no longer lank and untidy; now it was carefully curled and tumbled down her back like a scarlet and golden waterfall.

She looked incredible, and judging by the delighted smile playing around her lips, she knew it. As the Dazzlings walked down the corridor, she could hear her name being whispered reverently by students and staff alike, and she couldn't stop the grin that lit up her face. When she reached her locker, now free from graffiti and stood out from the rest of the dull green metal doors with two enormous sparkly blue 'S' stickers (matching Adagio's red 'AD', Aria's green 'AB' and Sonata's yellow 'SD'), she hurriedly scribbled a new entry in her diary before heading to homeroom.

 _ _September 2__ _ _nd__ _ _, 1989__

 _ _Dear Diary -__

 _ _You know, life__ ** _ _ **can**__** _ _be beautiful. You hope, dream and pray hard enough, and eventually you'll get your way.__

 _ _If you've ever wondered if it would feel good to look like hell on wheels, I can confirm that it does. My God, it's beautiful.__

 ** _ _ **I**__** _ _might be beautiful.__

 _ _And when you're beautiful, it's a beautiful fricken day.__


	2. The Price Of Fame

__September 22__ _ _nd__ _ _, 1989__

 _ _Dear Diary -__

 _ _It__ _'_ _ _s been three weeks since I made friends with the Dazzlings.__

 _ _Well - friends is a strong word.__

 _ _It's like they're people I work with and our job is being popular and shit.__

Sunset stashed the diary in her locker and grinned. She couldn't believe how much her life had changed in only three weeks. Being with the Dazzlings was like being a rock star.

Her smile sobered up when Twilight tapped her on the shoulder. The bespectacled girl smiled nervously at her. "Hey, Sunset."

"Hey Twilight," Sunset smiled back. One downside of being a Dazzling was that she hadn't properly spoken to Twilight in a while. Sure, her new life was exciting, but she missed her old friend.

"You look really beautiful these days," Twilight said wistfully. "You're so lucky."

Sunset laughed awkwardly and shrugged, tucking a stray red curl back into place. "Yeah…I'm still the same me underneath, though."

Twilight's gaze grew sad. "Are you?"

Sunset's eyes widened when she realised what Twilight meant. "Look, I'm sorry I bailed on movie night. I've just got a lot going on at the moment."

"I know, you're with the Dazzlings now. I'm really happy for you." Twilight sounded sincere; of course she did. Twilight didn't have an insincere bone in her body. "It's pretty exciting."

"It's whatever," Sunset giggled. "But I promise we'll hang soon, OK?"

"Sunset!" Aria's irate voice sounded from behind Twilight. "Adagio says to haul ass to the caf __pronto__!"

Sunset raised her eyebrows. "How very. I'll see you later then, Twilight."

"Yeah," Twilight sighed as Sunset and Aria walked off together. "Guess I'll see you later."

Adagio was upon them almost the second they entered the cafeteria. "Sunset!" she grinned. "I need you to forge a hot and horny yet subtle note in Timber Spruce's handwriting! You'll need something to lean on… Aria, bend over!"

Aria groaned, and obligingly bent over so that Sunset could lean on her back. Sunset pulled out her pen (her black one that she used for forgeries rather than the blue one she used in her diary) and scribbled as Adagio dictated:

"Hi Honey! I've been thinking about us in the old days. I hope you can come to my homecoming party! Signed, Timber. Oh, and put an 'xo' after the signature!"

"Good one, Adagio!" Sonata laughed as Aria straightened up and Sunset tore the note out of the notebook. She folded it carefully and handed it to the leader in red.

"What's this for, anyway?"

Adagio's smile had never looked crueller. "You know how Timber used to hang with Twilight Dorkle in kindergarten?"

Sunset felt a deep sense of unease, but shrugged and said blithely, "Yeah, we all did. What's your point?"

"We all didn't kiss on the kickball field!" Aria sniggered.

Sonata gasped loudly. "Oh my God, I remember! Timber kissed __Twilight Dorkle__! It was disgusting!"

"And… you're going to give her this note? Why?" Sunset asked fearfully.

"Come on," Aria wheedled. "The note will give her shower-nozzle masturbation material for __weeks__!"

Adagio glared. "Shut up, Aria!"

"Sorry, Adagio."

Adagio spun on her heel and called over to the jock table, "Timber! Be a sweetie and come over here for a moment please?"

Over at the jock table, Timber's eyes widened. "What do you think Adagio wants?" he asked Tornado excitedly.

Tornado grinned. "I bet she wants to sit on your Johnson and spin around like a goddamn pinwheel!"

Timber grinned back. "Punch it in!" he cheered, fist-bumping his friend, before slicking his hair back and sauntering over to Adagio and the Dazzlings.

Adagio smiled sweetly at him. "Be a dear and give this note to Twilight Dorkle for me?"

Sunset's eyes widened. "What? No!" This was even crueller than she'd anticipated.

Both Timber and Adagio ignored her. Timber grabbed the note and made to open it. "Since when do you hang out with that nerd-ass?"

"DON'T open it!" Adagio said hurriedly. "She's having an extra heavy flow and needed some advice from my gyno."

Timber made a disgusted expression. "Eeeeeeeeeeugh!"

Sunset took the opportunity to snatch the note back. "Yeah, I'll take that, thank you, thank you." Timber shrugged and went back to his teammates. Sunset turned to Adagio. "Listen, Adagio. Twilight's had a crush on Timber for, like, twelve years now! This could kill her. Come on. You're beyond this."

Adagio's perfectly drawn-on eyebrows shot up. "Are we going to have a problem? You got a bone to pick? You've come so far, why now are you __pulling__ on my __dick__?" she seethed, grabbing Sunset's collar. "If it were anyone else, I'd slap your face off right now for everyone to watch," she hissed quietly. "Lucky for you, I'm in a good mood. Listen up, bitch. I like a lot of things. I like being hot. I like starting new trends. I like drinking at parties. I like spending money. I like skipping gym. I like the fact that all the girls are scared of me, and all the guys want to fuck me, and some both. I like killer clothes. And one thing I __really__ like, that you've just reminded me of, is kicking nerds like you in the nose."

Adagio circled Sunset slowly. "If you lack the balls to be a Dazzling, go play dolls with Twilight Dorkle and let your mommy fix you a snack. __Or__ you could come smoke and then pound some rum and coke in my Porsche with any guy of your choice. Within reason. I'm literally offering you the opportunity of a lifetime, and all you have to do is prove that you're not a loser anymore."

"Come on Sunset," Aria added. "Being popular is great. Guys literally fall at your feet to take you out, and no matter how rich you are they will __always__ pay."

"They'll give you the homework answers too," Sonata added, and Sunset realised that this was probably how the Head Cheerleader had managed to make it to senior year without being held back.

"All you have to do is wave bye-bye to Twilight Dorkle," Aria said. "It's that simple."

"She's not really your friend," Sonata nodded. "I can tell. If Twilight's fairy godmother had waved her wand and given her the chance to be popular, Twilight would have dropped you in an instant. But of course, if you don't care, fine! Go braid her hair and watch Sesame Street together."

"Or you could forget her, get in my Jeep, and we'll go tear up someone's lawn," Aria offered. "Don't be such a pussy."

"You can join the team, Sunset,"Adagio said, reappearing beside them. Sunset hadn't even noticed that she'd left. "Or you can bitch and moan about morals. It's up to you. But if you want to fuck with the eagles, you've got to learn how to fly. It's that or end up like her." Adagio pointed behind Sunset, and the redhead turned to see Twilight dashing up to her, clutching a note that Sunset could've sworn she'd been holding herself a moment before. She groaned when she realised that Adagio must have stolen it and given it to Twilight while she'd been distracted.

"Sunset, look!" Twilight beamed. "Timber just invited me to his homecoming party! See? I told you that there was still something there. This __proves__ that he's been thinking about me."

Sunset glanced over her shoulder at the three identical smirks on the Dazzlings' faces. She turned back to Twilight. "Colour me stoked," she said hoarsely.

Twilight bounced up and down on her tiptoes. "I'm so happy!" She skipped off in the direction of her next class, despite there still being another thirty minutes before the bell.

Aria sniggered. "What a dork. I told you. It's shower-nozzle time."

Adagio looked furious. "Shut UP, Aria! The stupid plan hasn't even worked yet! We don't even know for sure she'll show up at the party!"

Sunset crossed her fingers behind her back that Twilight was smart enough to know that Timber couldn't have possibly written a note with no spelling mistakes, worked out that it was a prank, and didn't go to the party. Twilight was sensible like that. Unfortunately, she was also blinded by love. Sunset just had to hope for the best.

Adagio, Aria and Sonata turned to go to their table, but Adagio glanced back and grinned at Sunset. "I always get what I want, Sunset. The quicker you accept that, the easier your life will be. Quit being a lame-ass and enjoy the ride."

Sunset groaned and leaned back against the wall. Talk about being caught between a rock and a hard place. She hadn't been this ashamed of herself since her bed-wetting days.

An unfamiliar voice interrupted her self-loathing. "You shouldn't have bowed down to the swatch-dogs and diet-coke-heads," it admonished her. "They're gonna crush that girl."

For a millisecond, Sunset wondered if her conscience had suddenly developed a new voice (a male voice with a very attractive cadence) before she realised the speaker was actually a tall, handsome boy with messy blue hair, wearing a black trench-coat over ripped jeans, a torn white T-shirt and black converse. She blinked slowly, admiring his clear blue eyes, before she remembered what he'd just said to her. "E-excuse me?" she stuttered.

The boy closed the book he'd been reading and placed it on his table, next to a propped-up guitar case covered in stickers. "Look," he addressed her seriously, "you've clearly got a soul. You just have to work a little harder keeping it clean. After all," he grinned, "'we're all born marked for evil'."

He turned back to his book, but Sunset wasn't done talking to him. The quote was familiar to her, but it took a second before she remembered where from. "Whoa, you can't just quote Baudelaire at me and turn away!" she said excitedly. "I didn't catch your name."

He quirked an eyebrow at her, and gave her a funny little sideways smile. "I didn't throw it," he replied, blue eyes sparkling, and turned back to his book.

 _ _Oh my God__. Sunset forced herself not to physically swoon, tucked her hair behind her ear, and followed the Dazzlings to their table, only glancing back a few times. The third time, he was looking right back at her, and her cheeks turned bright red as she sat down.

Over at the jock table, Timber and Tornado were glaring at the boy as he continued reading.

"Who does that guy in the jacket think he is anyway?" Tornado grumbled. "Bo Diddley?"

Timber snorted. "Sunset's into his act, no doubt."

Let's kick his ass!" Tornado got up angrily. Timber placed a placating hand on his friend's shoulder.

"Cool it man, we're seniors!" he said. "We're too old for that shit." He grinned mischievously. "Let's give him a good scare though."

The two jocks mooched over to the boy's table. Timber promptly stuck his finger into the half-eaten muffin on his tray. "Were you gonna eat this?" he asked threateningly.

Tornado loomed over him. "Hey, sweetheart," he grinned. "What did your boyfriend say when you told him you were moving to Canterlot, Ohio?"

"My buddy Tornado here just asked you a question." The two jocks folded their arms sinisterly. Tornado turned to Timber.

"Hey Timber, doesn't this cafeteria have a 'no fags allowed' rule?"

Timber grinned menacingly. "Sure does."

Surprisingly, the boy looked unruffled. In fact, to Sunset's shock, he was grinning lazily. "Seems to have an open door policy for assholes, though," he said calmly.

Timber and Tornado both looked furious. " _ _What__ did you say, dickhead?" Timber snarled.

Tornado was less subtle. "Timber, hold his arms!" he growled.

Timber grabbed the boy's arms and pulled him off his seat, but once again his response was extremely unexpected: he kicked Tornado away from him and threw off Timber, then slapped Tornado's head with his book and punched Timber in the face. It was so fast that if you blinked you'd have missed it.

However, for Sunset Shimmer, time seemed to be going in slow motion. She couldn't help but watch hungrily as the boy in the trench-coat paused to grin at the stunned jocks. She was finding out very quickly that although fighting was a horrible thing, it became kind of a turn-on when it was someone as talented as this guy doing it. She knew she shouldn't have been watching crap like this, but - __damn__.

As he ducked out of the way of Timber's response punch, she actually found herself fantasising a little that they were fighting over __her__. And Mr No-Name-Kid, as she'd affectionately dubbed him in her head, was __winning__. In her head, he brushed the dust off his shoulders as his nemeses fell to the ground, and walked towards her, holding out a hand for her to take. Suddenly, he was dressed as a knight and she an old-timey princess, and he was carrying her through the no man's land of a battlefield. It occurred to her that he might not find her as interesting as she found him, but she reassured herself that it was just a dumb fantasy.

The fantasy was getting sophisticated now. In her dream, the boy had won another fight, but required CPR afterwards… she blushed at the thought of those perfect lips pressed against her own. Sunset shook herself out of the fantasy in time to hear Aria's low whistle of "Holy shit," and to see the boy straighten up fully - Timber and Tornado were groaning on the floor, Tornado clutching at his own crotch protectively - and brush imaginary dust off his shoulders. Just like in her fantasy.

That was where it ended, though. He picked up his book and his guitar case, examined the remains of the muffin, decided it wasn't worth the effort to digest it, and walked out of the cafeteria. But she could've sworn he turned back to wink at her.

Sunset sighed happily and felt her stomach fill with butterflies. She could live with it just being a fantasy for now.

So I'm back with another story. I know I should update my old ones, but my life kinda fell apart over the last year and I spent a lot of time putting it back together with no inspiration to write.

I hope y'all enjoy this. It's going to be quite different from my older work. Also it's rated mature for a reason that will become very clear in later chapters (though if you've seen Heathers, you'll probably know why).

Thanks for reading! I will try to update regularly.


	3. Freeze Your Brain

"God, Sunset, drool much?" Adagio snorted. "You were practically throwing your panties at that new kid." She glared sharply at Aria and Sonata, who both hurriedly giggled. Smirking, Adagio turned back to Sunset. "And from the look of your house, you can't afford replacement panties." Aria and Sonata giggled again, quicker this time, in order to avoid Adagio's wrath. The girls were in Sunset's back garden, playing croquet. Sunset was finding out that apparently croquet with the Dazzlings was a regular occurrence. Normally they went to Adagio's house, but Adagio had insisted that today they go to Sunset's. She had produced the croquet equipment (including colour coded mallets and balls) from the trunk of her bright red Porsche.

"Oh come on Adagio, I don't even know his name," Sunset rolled her eyes and hit her blue croquet ball in Adagio's direction. It bumped off the red ball softly.

Adagio scowled, and hit the red ball in the direction of Aria's green ball. They connected with a soft clunk. Aria glanced up at Adagio. "So, what's it gonna be, Adagio?" she asked. "Are you going to take the two shots, or send me out?"

Adagio approached her slowly, an incredulous look on her pretty face. "Did you puke up your brain as well as your lunch today, Aria? First you ask if you can be red, knowing that _ _I'm__ always red." She carefully placed one foot on top of her red croquet ball, which was still touching Aria's green one, and smacked it hard with the mallet. The green ball went flying off behind a small water feature and landed next to the trees at the bottom of the garden.

It would be a near impossible shot, and they all knew it.

"Shit," Aria said softly. Adagio grinned.

"It's your turn, Aria."

Aria made her way around the water feature and positioned herself next to the croquet ball. Her fellow Dazzlings offered 'encouragement' from the other side of the fountain.

"Easy shot, Aria," Adagio smirked.

"No way, no day," Sonata shook her head.

"Give it up, girl," Sunset added.

Aria scowled, and carefully hit the ball. It clanged off the metal clothes line pole, thunked off a tree, and rolled through the hoop. Adagio looked astounded.

"God, that was incredible!" Sonata beamed.

"Holy shit," Sunset added.

Aria smiled and made her way back over to the garden. "Your turn, Adagio."

Adagio pursed her lips. "I'm giving Sunset her shot."

Sunset obligingly hit her ball, and it rolled into Adagio's. Once again, Adagio smacked her ball into Aria's. Aria groaned.

" _ _Why?__ "

Adagio shrugged. "Why not?"

The sound of the patio doors opening made all four girls turn to see Sunset's mother and father smiling at them eagerly. Mrs Shimmer offered them a plate. "Here you go, girls! Care for some patê?"

Adagio raised an eyebrow at the plate. "That isn't patê," she said slowly. "It's __liverwurst__."

"I know that, Adagio," Mrs Shimmer assured her. "It's a family joke." She giggled delightedly.

Adagio fake-laughed. "Ha ha ha ha ha. Funny."

Mr Shimmer tutted loudly and shook his head. "Goddamn it," he said, looking up from his book. "Would someone please tell me why I read these spy novels?"

"Because you're an idiot, dad," Sunset responded, giggling.

"Oh yeah, that's it," Mr Shimmer grinned at his daughter. Meanwhile, Mrs Shimmer was standing next to Adagio with a mouth full of Liverwurst. "So, girls," she said thickly, "any plans for tonight?"

Adagio made a show of wiping spit off her perfect cheekbone. Sunset stepped in before thing could get ugly.

"There's a big homecoming party at Timber Spruce's tonight. I'm catching a ride with Adagio. We're going to hers to get ready."

"Speaking of which," Adagio interrupted. She, Aria and Sonata all picked up their croquet balls in sync, and swung their mallets over their shoulders. It was creepy, yet cool. Definitely more creepy than cool though.

Sunset chuckled nervously. "Great patê, Mom, but we've really gotta motor."

Mrs Shimmer placed a hand on her daughter's shoulder. "Don't let the popular girls change you," she stage-whispered. The Dazzlings could definitely hear her.

Sunset cringed internally. "I need them," she informed her mother.

Her mother looked confused. "For what? You have friends. You have Twilight! She's lovely!"

"Maybe I want more out of life than Liverwurst," Sunset said coldly. She picked up her ball, swung her mallet over her shoulder, and followed the Dazzlings out to Adagio's Porsche.

Mr Shimmer shrugged at his wife and grabbed a slice of Liverwurst. "Those girls seemed really nice," he smiled at her.

The only other vehicle in the parking lot of the 7-Eleven on Canterlot High Street was a sleek motorbike with a custom paint job. Sunset barely had time to admire the ornate FS painted on the side before Adagio was ordering her into the store. She should have figured that she would be the one sent out as Adagio's messenger girl. She groaned as she tottered towards the store - her shoes were made for aesthetic rather than practicality. Adagio's voice followed her into the store.

"Sunset! Don't forget Corn Nuts! It's not a party without Corn Nuts!"

"Yes, Adagio," Sunset sighed. Then she turned back to check. "Plain or BQ?"

"BQ!"

The redhead entered the store and perused the isles until she found what she was looking for. As she picked up several packets of the crunchy snack, a familiar voice startled her from behind.

"Greetings and salutations." Sunset turned, and sure enough, the blue-haired boy from the cafeteria was standing there, holding a Slurpee. He smiled at her. "You gonna buy a Slurpee with that?"

Sunset chuckled. "No, but if you're nice I'll let you buy me a Big Gulp," she flirted. Adagio wasn't around to make fun of her, so it couldn't hurt.

Mr No-Name Kid raised his eyebrows incredulously. "That's like going to Mickey D's to order salad!" he snorted. "Slurpee is the signature drink of the house. Did you say cherry or lime?"

"I said Big Gulp," Sunset raised her eyebrows right back at him. She found herself blushing a little. "I'm Sunset, by the way. Sunset Shimmer. You ever gonna tell me your name?"

The boy chuckled. "I'll end the suspense. Flash Sentry, at your service." He held out a hand for her to shake. When their fingers touched, she swore she could feel electricity crackling up her arm. She mentally shook herself. This was wrong! She was a Dazzling! But it felt so right…

"So, Flash Sentry. That thing you pulled in the caf today was pretty severe."

"The extreme always seems to make an impression," Flash shrugged. He sipped his Slurpee.

"You got me there," Sunset laughed. "I'm guessing that's your bike out front?"

"Yeah," Flash grinned. "It's a pretty sweet ride. I think it adds to my aesthetic."

"So, what's a Baudelaire-quoting, motorcycle-riding badass like you doing in Canterlot, Ohio?"

Flash's smile briefly slid off his face, but was back in place in an instant. "My dad's work. He owns a deconstruction company."

" _ _De__ construction?"

"Yeah, the old man seems to enjoy tearing shit down," Flash said blithely. "You've probably seen the adverts?" He slicked his hair back and pointed at her. "'Well, I'm Crash Sentry, and if it's in your way I'll make your day!'" he quoted.

Sunset recognised the advert instantly. "Right, then he pulls the plunger and the screen blows up!" she grinned. She peeked at Flash's face, and to her shock all the emotion had drained out of it. Then she realised. " _ _That's__ your __dad__?" she asked slowly.

"In all his toxic glory." Flash leaned against a display of Root Beer. "But I guess everyone's life has static. Is your life perfect?"

Sunset rolled her eyes and smiled. "Oh yeah, I'm on my way to a party at Timber Spruce's with the three most popular girls in school," she said dryly. "You remember Timber from the cafeteria?"

"Green hair or blue hair?"

"Green," Sunset laughed, before Adagio's voice came shrieking through the open doors.

"SunSEEEEEEEEEEEETTTTTT!"

Sunset winced. "No, my life's not perfect," she admitted. "I don't really like my friends."

Flash chuckled. "I don't really like your friends either," he grinned. He gestured to the shelves of the isle. "Crazy suggestion: bag the party and hang here."

"What, in a 7-Eleven?" Sunset scoffed. "Swanky first date."

"Hey," Flash said defensively. "I happen to love this place."

Sunset couldn't help but be charmed by this odd, awkward boy, with his messy blue hair and apparent love of convenience stores. "No offence, but why?"

"My dad's work means that I move around a lot. He goes where the jobs are and I go with him. Canterlot is the eleventh high school I've gone to. I never get the chance to make friends or join clubs. The only thing I can really trust is that there will be a 7-Eleven nearby. Las Vegas, Boston, Kansas… Texas. Every 7-Eleven has the same layout, and every single one has a slushie machine." Flash held up the Slurpee cup. "The brain freeze is another thing I can trust about this place. At this point, I think I'm happier when everything feels numb, and Slurpees are a guaranteed brain freeze."

"Who needs cocaine when you have slushies?" Sunset quipped sarcastically.

Flash nodded and offered her the cup. "Indeed. Care for a hit?"

"Does your mommy know you eat all that crap?" Sunset teased.

Flash's response was decidedly __not__ what she'd been expecting. "Not any more," he said softly. "When my mom was alive, we lived halfway normal. But now she's gone, and my dad's barely ever around. I taught myself how to cook pasta, and I learned how to pay rent. But most of all, I realised that the world is a shitty, shitty place, and it's easier to just freeze your brain and not deal with it." He looked deep into her eyes. "You've got your future all planned, Sunset Shimmer. You're gonna go to some fancy Ivy League school, and marry a lawyer by the time you're thirty. But you should still be prepared for the possibility of your world falling apart. Mine fell apart seven years ago, and since then I've done my best to just numb everything out. Sure, the brain freeze can hurt, but it makes it easier to just forget all your troubles. When my brain is frozen, I can forget that in six weeks I'll probably be travelling to an entirely different city in an entirely different state. And God knows that when you feel like you'd be better off dead, a slushie is better than opening a vein." His eyes were shut tight, and he took a deep breath before opening them again. "Just… try it." He offered her the cup again, and this time Sunset took him up on his offer.

She took a sip of the sugary, frozen drink, and shook her head. "I don't get it, I don't fell anything -" Suddenly she grimaced, and put her hands to her temple. "Aah… aaah! Son of a bitch!" she said delightedly.

"Sunset!" Sunset turned to see Adagio glaring at her. "Corn Nuts?" Sunset nodded, and held up three bags of Corn Nuts. Adagio didn't look particularly impressed. "Wave bye-bye to Red Dawn here, pay up, and let's motor." She stalked out of the shop.

Sunset hurriedly paid for the Corn Nuts and waved goodbye to Flash before following Adagio out of the shop. Hopefully that wouldn't be the last time they crossed paths.

 **A/N: here's another chapter. I actually finished writing this story, so I should probably update every day or two days - I do have a lot on at the moment with college applications, but there will be thirteen chapters in total. Thanks for reading!**


	4. Big Fun

**A/N: Warning: this chapter contains underage drinking and reference to sex and for that I am** ** _sorry_** **. The worst is yet to come, though. Hope you enjoy!**

At Timber's house, he and Tornado were waiting for their fathers to leave. Mr Spruce and Mr Twister were headed off for a weekend of fishing and wouldn't be back until 10AM on Sunday morning, and the boys were determined to make the most of it. Mr Spruce was insisting on reminding Timber to not get too rowdy, though.

"The neighbours have the number to the cabin, Timber. If they call to complain, I'm gonna come back here and knock the sand out of your vagina."

Timber snorted. "Dude, what am I? Five?"

His father glared sternly at him. "I'm your dad, not your dude."

"And that goes double for you, Tornado," Mr Twister added. "You're a guest in Douglas' house and you'll treat it with respect."

Tornado grinned. "Sure thing… __dude!"__ He fist-bumped Tornado, laughing. His dad, however, was less than amused.

"All right, Douglas, hold his arms!" he snapped. Mr Spruce grabbed Tornado and held his arms behind his back while Mr Twister threw punches at his stomach. "Who's a sissy?" he laughed at his son. "Who's a big fat sissy? Who's going to wear a pretty pink prom dress to the party?"

Tornado protested unhappily but eventually conceded. "I am," he choked out. "I'm a big fat sissy!"

Mr Spruce let him go, and his father huffed out a laugh. "Damn right you are," he grinned. "Have fun at your party, son."

Mr Spruce offered Mr Twister a fist. "Punch it in!" he laughed, and their fathers fist-bumped each other before they left.

Twister groaned and clutched his stomach. "Man, that sucked," he moaned. Timber, meanwhile, was looking out the window, and as his father's car backed out of the driveway and vanished off down the road, he grinned.

"Dude, who cares! The folks are gone, I got my party slippers on!"

By the time the Dazzlings arrived, the party was already in full swing. The bass was blasting, the lights were dimmed, and teenagers were drinking and smoking like it was the end of the world. Sunset was fairly sure she'd seen someone skinny dipping in the pool out back.

She'd been left to her own devices (Aria and Timber were making out in the centre of the party, and Adagio, Sonata and Tornado had vanished upstairs together about 5 minutes after they'd got there) and she really wasn't sure how to behave at parties like this - the closest she'd ever got to this was turning up the music and dancing with Twilight. Sunset perched at the island in the kitchen and drank a beer. Two beers. Three beers. __Four__ beers.

Sonata re-emerged about half an hour later, with messy hair and her skirt on backwards. "God, Sunset," she greeted her, "never have a threesome on a water bed. I feel __seasick__. I need some shots, you?"

"Sure," Sunset said. Her head was beginning to spin a little. "Uh, I only __think__ I know how this works, though."

Sonata shoved a slice of lime and a shot of green liquid towards Sunset, before shaking some salt onto the back of her hand. Sunset weighed up her options, before licking the salt off her hand and looking expectantly at Sonata, who nodded encouragingly. "So it's salt, then lime, then shot, right?" she asked. Actually, she slurred it. Four beers will do that to you.

Sonata shook her head. "No, it's salt and __then__ shot and -"

"You're doing it __wrong__!" Adagio snapped from behind her. Sunset hadn't even seen her enter.

Sunset shrugged, took the shot and bit the lime. Sonata clapped delightedly. "You're a natural! Just like my mom."

"Really?" Sunset slurred, not stopping to analyse this. "I feel great!"

"Sunset!" Sunset turned to see Bulk Biceps, one of Timber and Tornado's teammates, grinning at her. "You are lookin' __good__ tonight!" He wandered off to another room.

"Whoa," Sunset whispered to Sonata. "Did you see that? A hot guy smiled at me without a trace of mockery!"

Sonata beamed. "That's how it is when you're a Dazzling! Hey, you know what would make this even better?" she asked conspiratorially. "I saw a girl with a joint. Let's go ask her for a drag of it."

Sunset was drunk. She did not have any experience with alcohol. She should stop now. So of course she grinned and nodded. "Let's find that weed! I want a hit!"

She and Sonata quickly found Rainbow Dash, who was holding a lit joint. She very graciously allowed both of them to take hits from it before snatching it away. Aria rejoined them while they were giggling about… well, Sunset couldn't remember, but it must have been funny.

"I can't believe I just hooked up with Timber in his parents' shower," she said flatly. "It wasn't even on and my hair is still ruined. Some guys just don't understand common courtesy!"

Sonata laughed uproariously. "You-you-you're still talkin' all smart! You need a drink. Or thirty. Haha, thirty sounds like thirsty!"

Sunset lost it at that. She couldn't help it. Aria just looked __so__ indignant.

It was a few hours before anything else funny happened. Tornado came running into the centre of the party clutching a papier-mâché pig. "Alright, listen up, Canterlot!" he yelled. "What're the Wondercolts gonna do to the Shadowbolts and their stupid pig next Saturday?"

Timber ran to join him, grabbing the pig. "We're gonna make 'em go __wee! Wee! Wee! Wee!__ All the way home!" he laughed. Then he started humping the pig and making "Wee! Wee! Wee! Wee!" noises.

Everyone was falling about laughing, even more so when Tornado grabbed the front of the pig and started humping its face. Well, __nearly__ everyone.

"Ugh," Aria rolled her eyes. "Way to show maturity, Timber."

Timber looked up from the pig. "Not mature enough for you, Aria?" he slurred. "I'll show you 'mature'." Before the girl had time to blink, he'd dropped the pig and began humping her back instead. Aria looked supremely angry.

"Quit it, Jackass!" she yelled. "Get off of me!" Timber ignored her. Sunset saw red. She tapped him sharply on the back.

"Yo, Timber!" she snapped. He stopped humping poor Aria and turned to glare at her. Sunset felt all her confidence vanish. "Emergency. I just saw some freshmen trying to sneak over the pool fence."

Timber's eyes widened, and he growled furiously. "I __hate__ freshmen!" he snarled, before dashing out the back door to find them with parting yell of "Where are you little pricks? I'm coming for you!" Sunset turned to Aria.

"Hey, are you OK?" she asked worriedly.

Aria stuck her middle finger up at Sunset. "I didn't need your help!" she snapped. Sunset looked delighted.

"Aww, thanks for the finger, Aria, but I don't really have to vomit right now!" She fell about laughing, ignoring how furious Aria looked.

Tornado skipped past her and passed her another shot glass. "You need a jello shot!" he said loudly and drunkenly. Sunset thanked him and swallowed it. It was a dream come true; it felt like it was the first time people weren't laughing at her expense. She felt like Bono at Live Aid.

Adagio Dazzle's voice jumped her out of her jello shot trance. "Twilight Dorkle in the flesh!" she grinned. The party must have been going for longer than Sunset thought, because sure enough, there was Twilight, holding a plastic bottle and looking nervous. Sunset went over to say hi. Behind her she could hear Aria to Adagio, saying "Here comes the cootie squad! We should -"

"Shut __UP,__ Aria!" Adagio snapped.

"Sorry, Adagio!"

Sonata's voice cut in. "Look who's with her, oh my God!"

Sunset was hugging Twilight in greeting. She laughed nervously. "I, uh, I can't believe you actually came!"

Twilight beamed. "It's exciting, right? Ooh, I wanna say hi to Timber." She held up her bottle excitedly. "I brought Sparkling Cider!"

Adagio's smile became almost wolf-like. "Showing up here took some guts," she murmured. "I'm surprised Twilight Dorkle was brave enough to even set foot on the driveway. I think it's high time we ripped those guts out!"

Aria picked up the abandoned pig piñata. "Well, who does this pig remind you of?" she laughed. "Imagine some glasses on the snout, and there she is!"

"Where the hell are those freshmen?" Timber groaned loudly as he came back into the house. Sunset turned to see Twilight approach him.

"Hi, Timber," she said nervously. "I, uh, wasn't gonna come, but since you took the time to write that sweet note -"

"What note?" Timber interrupted. "Why do you gotta be so weird all the time? You know, people wouldn't hate you so much if you acted normal," he slurred, then snatched her bottle, opened it and took a big gulp. He spat Sparkling Cider everywhere. "There's no alcohol in here! Are you trying to poison me?" he demanded of poor Twilight.

Sunset would've intervened, but an absolute banger came on the sound system at that point and she couldn't help joining in the dancing.

" _ _The folks are gone, it's time for big fun! (Big fun!)__

 _ _We're up 'til dawn, havin' some big fun! (Big fun!)__

 _ _So let the speakers blow, they'll buy another stereo!__

 _ _Our folks got no clue 'bout all the shit their children do!__

 _ _Why are they surprised whenever we're unsupervised__

 _ _It's big fun! (Big fun!) Big fun! (Big fun!) Big fun! (Big fun!)__

 _ _Big Fun! WHOO!"__


	5. Nothing To Lose

It was nearly 2AM on Sunday morning and the party was still going strong; the students only had about eight hours before Timber's father returned and they intended to make the most of them. Adagio Dazzle clapped her hands to get everyone's attention.

"Alright, Wondercolts! Time to celebrate our predicted victory over the Shadowbolts by whacking apart their mascot!"

Sonata Dusk appeared beside her, holding a croquet mallet. "Who wants to take the first swing at the piñata?" she giggled, although Sunset suspected that she was really asking Adagio who _she_ wanted to smash it.

She was right. Adagio turned to Twilight with a deceptively encouraging smile. "Twilight Sparkle! I think you should do it."

Twilight looked nervous, but nodded. "I don't really know this game."

"Oh, don't worry, it's easy!" Adagio grinned. "Sonata?"

"Let's show this girl some Canterlot spirit!" Sonata removed Twilight's glasses and set them down on a nearby table, leaning the croquet mallet next to it. She produced a blindfold and covered Twilight's eyes, then she and Adagio began spinning Twilight around to make her dizzy, spurred on by the students chanting "Twilight! Twilight! Twilight!"

Aria Blaze hurried, grinning, into the room, clutching the papier-machê pig - only something was different. The pig was now dressed in a pink sweater-vest, and wore glasses and a dark blue wig. Sunset's stomach dropped when she realised that this - dressing up the pig as Twilight and having her smash it apart - had been the true intention of the stupid note. Before she knew what she was doing, she was pulling the pig out of Aria's grip.

Aria looked shocked. "What the fuck, Sunset?" she yelled, snatching at the piñata. Adagio and Sonata had stopped spinning Twilight, who fell to her knees and hurried to remove the blindfold and retrieve her glasses.

"Give me the pig, Aria!"

"Adagio! Sonata! Help me!"

Sunset managed to pull the pig out of Aria's grasp, and dashed outside to the pool. "You want it?" she seethed at the Dazzlings. "Swim for it!" And with that, she threw the piñata into the water.

Twilight had found her glasses, and Sunset rushed to her side. "Go home, I'll explain later," she said softly.

Twilight blinked confusedly. "But what about -"

"No," Sunset shook her head. "Just leave. While you still can. This could get ugly."

Eventually Twilight nodded. She gathered her coat, and with one final longing glance at Timber, she left.

She was safe.

Sunset wished she could say the same for herself.

As the door shut behind Twilight, Sunset turned slowly around to face the Dazzlings. The room was silent. All eyes were on them. But for the first time, it didn't feel good to be the centre of attention.

Sunset straightened decisively. "Well, we gave it a shot," she addressed Adagio. "I'm resigning my commission from the Lip Gloss Gestapo. Back to civilian life." She knew that if being popular meant you had to do things like that to innocent people like Twilight, then she didn't want any part of it.

Adagio's eyes flashed, and she'd grabbed Sunset's collar in an instant, swinging her around, ignoring Sunset's protests that she didn't feel well. "Oh no," she hissed. "You don't get to be a nobody again. No, come Monday, you're an ex-somebody. Not even the losers will touch you. You can transfer to Crystal Prep, and you can transfer to Townsville, but no one at Canterlot is going to let you play their _reindeer games!"_  
Here's the thing. When you combine a low alcohol tolerance with more than twenty-four hours of drinking, and then you spin around violently, your body isn't going to appreciate it. This was the case for Sunset, who opened her mouth to respond, but instead pitched forwards and emptied the contents of her stomach over Adagio's black leather ankle boots.

Adagio's shriek rattled the windows. "You were a bluebird! You were a girl-scout cookie! I made you popular, I raised you up from nothing! And this is the thanks I get? I got paid in _puke!"_

Sunset gazed at Adagio through hooded eyes. She slowly wiped her mouth with the back of her hand, and when she spoke, she had the confidence of a man who has been to jail so often that he is no longer afraid of it.

"Lick it up, baby. _Lick it up."_

Everyone looked shocked. Most looked somewhat delighted. The majority of boys looked excited at the possibility of a cat fight. But Sunset only had eyes for Adagio.

Her hot rage had vanished, and she smiled maliciously at Sunset. "I know who I'm eating lunch with on Monday," she said softly. "Do you?"  
Adagio turned back to the students, who were gazing at the two girls with apprehension. "All right, party people!" she snapped. "Where's the goddamn keg?"

The party recommenced as quickly as it had stopped. Sunset was the only person who didn't join in. She snatched her coat from the pile and hurried away from the house. Three streets away, she paused and sat on a low concrete wall to remove her heels and rub her feet. And all of a sudden, the reality of what she'd done hit her like a ton of bricks.

By mouthing off to Adagio Dazzle, Sunset had essentially signed the papers for her own social execution. The Demon Queen of high school had decreed that by 8AM on Monday morning, Sunset would be deleted. She'd be the girl who'd had the chance to go all the way, but had been too afraid to. The Dazzlings would destroy her reputation. Her head would be stuffed and mounted on Adagio's wall within the week. She had thirty hours at best to live before the axe of reality swung down and cut off her head.

Sunset stumbled to her feet, scooped up her heels, and tripped off down the street. She could feel the fog of alcohol slowly lifting from her brain, but she needed to decide what to do with herself sooner or later. Preferably sooner. She was still drunk enough that changing her name, leaving Canterlot and starting a new life in Ponyma seemed like a reasonable option. Of course, there was the question of how to get there - Sunset doubted her mother would let her borrow her station wagon. There was a pretty nice motorbike sitting in the driveway she was passing. She considered stealing it, but the more she thought about it, the more familiar the bike looked. Could it have been -?

The F.S. painted on the side confirmed it. This was Flash Sentry's bike. And this must have been his house.

And that realisation brought some _very_ different ideas for how to spend her last thirty hours to her mind.

Forget running away. It was time to get _freaky_.

Conveniently, the house was a single-story dwelling, and one of the downstairs lights was on. She approached the window, and her cheeks flushed pink as the view of Flash removing his shirt greeted her. God, she needed it _hard._ She examined the window, finding it partially open with one of those clips that kept the wind from blowing it too far. It was easy enough to snap off with the help of the scissors on her Swiss army knife.

As she pushed the window open wide enough to climb through, Sunset laughed to herself at the absurdity of the situation. Here she was, a dead girl walking, standing in Flash Sentry's yard and snapping off his window lock in the hopes of seducing him before she was written out of existence by Adagio Dazzle.

Without even pausing to knock, she scooped up her shoes and launched herself through the open window, landing in a heap on the floor. Sunset picked herself up and straightened her skirt, grinning at the astounded boy staring at her from his bed.

"Sunset?" Flash stuttered. "What are you doing in my room?" He sounded delightfully nervouscited.

Sunset held up her index finger and shushed him dramatically. Now was not the time for conversation. "Sorry about the window," she said matter-of-factly, "but I decided I must ride you 'til I break you. I mean, uh, if that's OK with you. But Adagio is going to write me out of existence on Monday morning, so if it's going to happen, it needs to happen now. So if you're up for this, shut your mouth and lose them tighty-whiteys."

"I-I-I," Flash choked out. "I mean, yes. _Yes._ Let's - yeah, let's do this!" His cheeks were adorably red.

Sunset grinned and pushed him to the ground. "Get on all fours, then, sweetheart," she grinned. "And don't worry about protection; I'm on the pill." She guided his hands to the straps of her halter-dress, but felt his fingers falter on it. She realised for the first time how nervous he looked. "Is everything OK?" she asked worriedly. "I don't wanna force you into anything you're uncomfortable with. If you're not into this, we can stop now, I understand."

Flash shook his head. "It's not that," he said quietly, and this was almost an entirely different person to the cocky, brash boy she'd met in the cafeteria and the 7-eleven. "I'm just wondering… why _me_ of all people? Surely there's a ton of jocks lining up to be with someone as beautiful as you."

Sunset felt her heart melt, and she knelt down next to him. "It's because you're beautiful," she whispered. "On Friday, you told me you were numb inside, but somehow I just can't agree. Yeah, you're right, the world is unfair, but we can keep it locked outside. She got up and shut the window. "There," Sunset said, offering him a hand to get up. She led him over to his bed and sat down, pulling him with her. "Now it's just you and me. And if I'm beautiful, and you're beautiful, and it's beautiful in here, then we can make _this_ beautiful too."

Flash was looking at her like she was a goddess. "That works for me," he whispered, and then he pulled her into a searing kiss.

It was even more amazing than Sunset's fantasy had made it out to be. Like when they'd first touched in the 7-eleven, it simply felt _right,_ like they were meant to be. She could have kissed him forever. Suddenly clothes were being removed and her expensive dress was crumpled on the floor and she didn't even care because it was _Flash_ who had removed it, Flash who stared at her like she was the most amazing thing he'd ever seen, Flash who was here loving her in all her naked, ex-somebody glory.

"Oh! Yeah!"

"Uh, Sunset? I was just wondering - how did you know this was my house?"

"Motorbike out front," Sunset grunted impatiently. "Come on, I want to fucking break the bed!"

"Uh, yeah, I think you tore my mattress."

"No big deal, it's not like you're going to be sleeping tonight anyway. Better chug that Mountain Dew!"

"Okay…"

"Come on, Flash," Sunset groaned. "Get your Goddamn ass in _gear._ Make this whole town, this entire nightmare - just disappear!"

"Okay!" Flash was trying, she knew, but she reckoned he could use some instructions.

"Come on, slap me." He obligingly slapped her face, and she sighed happily. "OK, now pull my hair." He did so, getting drunk off he delighted noises she made. He got more confident, and ran his hands up and down her body.

"Is this OK?"

Sunset placed her finger against his lips. "Yes, _yes, more_ than OK. But no more talking!"

Flash kissed her again, and she moaned into his mouth. He wasn't very good at sticking to the no talking rule without her mouth pressed against his, but neither was she so it didn't really matter.

"Yeah!"

"Yes!"

"Fuck yes! Oh my God, Flash!"

"Sunset! Wait!"

"Yeah!"

"Yeah!"

"Yeah!"

 _"OW!"_

"Sorry!"

"It's fine, it's fine, it's - OH MY GOD!"

"YYYYYYYEEEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAHHHHHH!"

 **"Hello, _slut."_**

 **Sunset jerked awake and sat up. Adagio glared at her from the foot of the bed. Flash was still asleep next to her. She immediately became very aware that she was still topless, and hurriedly pulled the duvet up to cover herself. "How did you get in here?!"**

 **Adagio cackled. "I'm like oxygen; I'm everywhere." She cast her eyes derisively over Sunset's unclothed state and the naked sleeping boy next to her. "Really, Sunset? Sleeping with Psycho-Trenchcoat-Kid? I will _crucify_ you for this. Everyone at CHS is going to know that good little Sunset Shimmer is nothing but a _dirty whore."_**

 **"Why are you so determined to hurt me?" Sunset demanded. She nearly felt like crying. It was bad enough that Adagio would ruin her life, but now she was probably going to ruin Flash's life too.**

 **Adagio tossed her hair and shrugged. "Because I can. It will be _so very._ " Her voice echoed, getting louder, rattling around Sunset's head.**

She screamed.

"Sunset? Sunset! Are you OK?" Flash was sitting up next to her, looking at her concernedly.

Sunset blinked. Adagio was gone. She nodded slowly. "Yeah. It was just a bad dream."

Flash felt her forehead. "You're soaking wet."

"I'll be fine." The redhead sighed and groped for her dress. Apparently in their desperation last night it had been thrown to the other side of the room, and she got up to retrieve it, grabbing her underwear on the way. Flash leaned back in bed, raising an eyebrow at her.

"What's the rush?" His voice was full of confusion.

Sunset paused in her attempt to fasten the halter-neck of her dress. "I've got to get to Adagio's," she said slowly and carefully, as though he was a moron not to have realised.

If anything, Flash looked even more confused. "What are you talking about? I thought you said you were done with Adagio."

"Yeah, and it was a sweet fantasy," Sunset said bitterly. "A world without Adagio, a world where everyone is free. But now it's morning and I have to go kiss her aerobicized ass." She jammed her feet back into her high heels and slung her leather jacket over her shoulder.

Flash crawled out of bed and hurriedly dressed himself, grabbing her arm as he tried to slide one foot into a battered Converse sneaker. "Well, let me come with," he suggested.

"Really?"

Flash shrugged and wedged his other shoe onto his foot. "Y'know. For backup."

A smile crept onto Sunset's face. "OK. Um, thanks!" She stood on her tiptoes to kiss him, and he kissed her back. However, this was far sweeter and slower than their previous kisses, which had all been quick and desperate. Sunset thought that she could get used to kissing him like this.

They broke apart, and Sunset smiled awkwardly at him. "By the way," she said, smoothing his shirt back into place, "you… you were my first."

She spun and left the room before she saw his expression (which, by the way, was partially shocked, partially relieved, but mostly proud).

As they pushed open the kitchen door of the sprawling sandstone bungalow, Sunset shouted for Adagio to check if she was in. "Adagio? Adagio!"

"Maybe she's not home?" Flash suggested, but Sunset shook her head. "Nah. She skips the Sunday morning visit to Grandma's even when she's _not_ hungover. Adagio!"

This time they got a response: "WHAT?" Adagio did _not_ sound happy to be woken up.

"It's Sunset," Sunset called back to her. "I came to apologise."

Adagio gave a loud, fake laugh. "HA! Well, I hope you brought knee-pads, bitch. Fix me a Prairie Oyster and I'll think about it."

A hangover cure was a small price to pay for forgiveness, but Sunset couldn't help but feel some lingering resentment towards Adagio for the attempted prank on Twilight. She opened the fridge with a groan. "Prairie Oyster, what's in that? Vinegar, raw egg -"

"Worcester hot sauce, salt and pepper," Flash supplied from where he was riffling through a cupboard.

Sunset turned to him, impressed. "You know your hangover cures."

Flash laughed awkwardly. "My dad taught me all kinds of stuff." He continued taking bottles out of the cupboard and examining them while Sunset set about making the cure in a red mug.

When she'd added the pepper, Sunset grinned mischievously. "Hey, here's my revenge," she chuckled to Flash. "I'll drop a phlegm globber in her Prairie Oyster. She'll never know!" It was genius, if she did say so herself. She cleared her throat several times before spitting phlegm into the cup.

Flash looked up from where he'd had his head in the kitchen cupboard. He offered her a bottle of drain cleaner. "I'm more of a _No Rust Build-Up_ man, myself," he said jokingly.

Sunset snorted. "Don't be a dick. That stuff will kill her."

"Thus ending her hangover," Flash pointed out. "I say we go with Draino." He began pouring the bright blue liquid into a glass.

"What? No!" Sunset snapped. "You're joking, right? Besides, Adagio would never drink anything that looks like that."

Flash shrugged and grabbed another red mug. "So we'll put it in a mug. She won't know what she's drinking."

Sunset grabbed his arm. "Seriously, Flash, stop. You're scaring me."

Flash put the bottle down. "Chicken!" he clucked, flapping his elbows.

Sunset remained unimpressed. "You're not funny."

Flash sighed and smiled at her. "OK, you're right," he said. "I'm sorry."

Sunset smiled and kissed him, feeling his arms wrap around her waist. She was back to that safe place she'd found in his bedroom, where nothing could hurt her, and briefly it didn't matter if Adagio ruined her life because she'd always have this moment.

Apparently Adagio couldn't even be content with ruining Sunset's life, because she ruined the moment as well. "Prairie Oyster! Chop chop!" she yelled from her bedroom.

Sunset slowly pulled away from Flash and groped for the cup, unwilling to look away from his beautiful eyes just yet. She felt the handle and picked it up, turning away from him with a smile. Flash grinned after her, then glanced back down at the other mug left on the counter. A frown flickered briefly onto his face. "Sunset, wait!"

Sunset turned back to him. "What?"

Flash hesitated, then shook his head almost imperceptibly. "It's nothing. Just… good luck in there."

Adagio was sitting up in bed when they entered her room. She was clad in bright red floral-print pyjamas, and there was a matching nightmask on the pillow next to her. Flash shuddered. _Rich girls._

The ginger girl smirked at them. "Ah, Sunset Shimmer. And Jesse James. _Quel surprise_. Sunset never does do what you tell her - but I'm sure you found that out last night, huh? Makes sense she'd go for a psychopath instead of a jock." She stretched and got out of bed, folding her arms across her chest. "Well, what are you waiting for, Sunset? Get to it. Beg my forgiveness."

Sunset sighed. "Look Adagio, we both said a lot of mean things to each other last night that we both regret now, and -"

Adagio interrupted her with a huff. "I'd actually _prefer_ it if you did this on your knees. In front of your boy toy here."

"Yeah, anyway," Sunset continued, "I'm really sorry -"

Again Adagio interrupted her. "Ha! Do I look like I'm joking? Get on your knees and _beg_ , Sunset. I won't ask again," she snarled.

Sunset sighed unhappily and lowered herself onto her knees. Adagio nodded triumphantly. "Nice. But you're still dead to me." And with that she grabbed the cup and drained it in one.

Something was wrong. Adagio's face was screwed up - not from swallowing a phlegm globber like Sunset had expected, but in pain. Then she began coughing like she was trying to puke out her lungs. Sunset got up slowly in shock. Adagio looked really sick. She was grasping at her own throat, gagging - and her lips were stained a horribly familiar shade of blue. "Adagio?" Sunset asked uncertainly.

Adagio turned to Sunset. Her eyes were, as always, full of fury - but there was fear mixed in with it now too. "Corn… Nuts!" she choked out.

Then she collapsed through the glass coffee table.


	6. Cured

Sunset couldn't breath for a second before she burst into action. "Don't just stand there!" she screamed at Flash. "Call 911!"

Flash knelt down next to Adagio and carefully turned her over. He felt her neck for a pulse, and his face said it all. "It's a little late for that," he said quietly.

Sunset knelt down on Adagio's other side and grabbed her by the shoulders, shaking her. "Adagio! Snap out of it!" she yelled hysterically. "Adagio! ADAGIO!" Adagio's head flopped back limply.

She was dead.

"Oh my God," Sunset whispered in disbelief. "I just killed my best friend!"

"And your worst enemy," Flash pointed out.

"Same difference," Sunset murmured. She was beginning to hyperventilate. "Fuck, the police are going to think that I did this on purpose. They're going to have to send my SAT scores to San Quentin!"

Flash's attention had been caught by something balanced on the remains of the coffee table. "Or maybe not," he said quietly. "Look at this. She was reading _The Bell Jar._ " He held up a copy of Sylvia Plath's famous novel and opened it to the inscription. There, in bright red ink, were the words _This book is property of Adagio Dazzle_.

"Sunset realised what he meant. "Oh… oh _no."_

"Yes!" Flash said. "It's the perfect way out of this. Look, we did a murder, and that's bad, but if it's a suicide thing - the police won't think twice about it. Suicide is what teenagers do, as far as they're concerned. You can fake her handwriting, right?" Sunset nodded. "Make her sound deep, like…" Flash cleared his throat, "'My world was full of the pain that only Sylvia Plath could describe. My problems were myriad' -"

"'I was having my period'," Sunset suggested, giggling. Flash looked at her like she'd gone mad, and for some reason she found that even funnier. Then she looked down at Adagio lying next to her, and she remembered what she'd technically just done. "Oh my God!"

"This is serious, you could go to jail for this!" Flash snapped. "Get your head on straight now!"

"You're right, you're right," Sunset nodded. She took a deep, calming breath. "But Adagio would never use the word 'myriad'. She missed it on her vocab test."

"So it's a badge for her failures at school," Flash suggested. He grabbed a pen and a notebook off the dresser and handed them to Sunset. "Work with me here. Think long and hard, conjure her up in your mind. What would _she_ say? What's her final statement to a cold, uncaring planet?"

Sunset took another deep breath, summoned up Adagio's dramatic flair, and began to write:

 _Believe it or not, I knew about fear - I knew the way loneliness stung. I hid behind smiles and crazy hot clothes; I learned to kiss boys with my tongue. But, oh, the world, it held me down - it weighed like a concrete prom queen crown!_

 _No one thinks a pretty girl has feelings! No one gets her insecurities. I am more than shoulder pads and makeup - no one sees the me inside of me._

"What do you think?" she offered Flash the note so far. He nodded, but a voice that definitely wasn't his snapped, " _Jesus_ , you're making me sound like Air Supply!"

Sunset nearly dropped the pen in shock. _Adagio Dazzle_ of all people was sitting cross-legged on the bed, glaring at her. But Adagio's body was definitely still lying next to her, very much dead.

 _Great_ ,Sunset realised. _I killed someone who has come back to haunt me as the most annoying ghost **ever.**_

Flash apparently couldn't see or hear the ghost, because he was examining the note. "This is good," he nodded. "Keep going, though. It'll have to be a bit longer to fool the cops. This is _Adagio Dazzle_ , drama queen extraordinaire we're talking about."

 _They couldn't see past my rock star mystique; they wouldn't dare look in my eyes. But just underneath was a terrified girl who clings to her pillow and cries! My looks were just like prison bars - they've left me a myriad of scars._

(Adagio interrupted again at this part. "'Myriad'? Nice!")

 _No one thinks a pretty girl has substance; that's the curse of popularity! I am more than just a source of handjobs! No one sees the me inside of me!_

 _Box up my clothing for Goodwill, and give the poor my Nordic Track! Donate my car to crippled kids, or to those Ghetto moms on crack. Give them my hats and my CDs, my pumps, my flats, my three TVs._

 _No one thinks a pretty girl has feelings, but I weep for all I failed to be! Maybe I can help the world by leaving - maybe that's the me inside of me._

 _~ Adagio Dazzle_

"Kind of repetitive, don't you think?" Flash said as they left the house. Sunset nodded.

"That's Adagio's style. You should have seen what she handed in for the poetry assignments in Creative Writing."

Flash grinned. "And the fake will you stuck in there?"

Sunset shrugged. "My personal revenge. She was a terrible person; if her belongings can do some good for the world it's better for everyone."

* * *

On Monday, it was all the teachers could talk about; Adagio Dazzle, who'd seemed so flawless and happy and perfect, had _committed suicide_. You couldn't enter a classroom without hearing a teacher muttering something about 'Adagio' or 'terrible loss' or 'Draino'. Personally, Sunset thought that Ms Cheerilee looked far too happy about this. A girl was literally _dead_ , but when Sunset paused outside the teachers' lounge to eavesdrop during her passing period, she overheard the guidance councillor's joyful tones standing out amidst the seriousness of the other teachers.

"Adagio Dazzle isn't your everyday suicide." That was Principal Celestia.

"You should cancel classes." Vice Principal Luna.

"No way, Luna. I send the kids home before lunch, and the switchboard will light up like a Christmas tree."

"Our children are _dying!_ " Ah, there was Ms Cheerilee. "What this school needs is a good old-fashioned rap-session. I suggest we get everyone into the auditorium and just talk and _feel_ together."

"Thank you, Ms Cheerilee. Call me when the shuttle lands." Sunset couldn't help but giggle at Principal Celestia's unimpressed tone. Finally, someone who could shut down Ms Cheerilee's ridiculous and hypocritical openness policy.

"Go ahead, laugh at the hippy!" Ms Cheerilee snapped. "I'm telling you, we _all_ misjudged Adagio Dazzle, myself included. This is one of the loveliest suicide notes I've _ever_ read. Have you read it? Here, take one."

Sunset left in disgust, at both herself and Ms Cheerilee, when she heard Mr Doodle say "She made _copies_?" in an incredulous voice.

She couldn't believe it either.

* * *

Third period was a free and Sunset was spending it with Sonata and Aria in the girls' locker room. Sonata was shaking her head tragically. "God, I can't believe it. Adagio's life seemed so perfect! I'm gonna miss her so much!"

Aria definitely didn't seem half as cut up about it as Sonata. She was ravenously stuffing chicken wings into her face. Sunset raised an eyebrow. "Careful there, Aria, you might actually be digesting something." She was actually relieved, though. No one had seen Aria eat a decent meal and actually keep it down since the end of middle school.  
"Yeah," Sonata added. "Where's your urge to purge?"

Aria threw the finished chicken wing over her shoulder. "Fuck it!" she beamed.

Sonata was going through the gym locker that had belonged to Adagio Dazzle. "Oh my God!" she gasped She was holding up a red and blue plastic watch. "Adagio left one of her swatches in here." She tossed it to Sunset. "Here, Sunset. She would have wanted you to have it. She always said you couldn't accessorize for shit."

Sunset caught the swatch and stared disbelievingly at it. Almost as though in a trance, she clipped it around her wrist. It felt perversely like some kind of trophy.

* * *

Fifth and Sixth period were the worst. They had seventh and eighth off, but Ms Cheerilee had called a meeting in the cafeteria with the entire senior year group to 'help them deal with their grief'. By the time she managed to get Sonata to stop crying and Timber and Tornado to stop goofing off they only had about half an hour of 'healing' left.

Ms Cheerilee was passing around sheets of paper, and Sunset winced as she realised what they were. "Now, I have mimeographed copies of Adagio's suicide note so you can all _feel_ her anguish," the teacher was saying. Sunset rolled her eyes.

Sonata burst into tears again. "I never knew about her pain!" she sobbed. "Her world seemed like a perfect place!"

"I guess her life had hit a rocky patch," Applejack added.

 _"That's_ why she punched me in the face!" Rarity realised. "Deep down she wasn't really cruel or vain; she was just sad and lonely!"

The general consensus was that Adagio hadn't meant to be a snatch. Everyone was claiming that they'd known it all along. Sunset rolled her eyes. She would have burst out laughing at the ridiculousness of it all, but Ms Cheerilee zeroed in on her like a moth to light. "Sunset Shimmer, you've been very quiet. What's on your mind?"

"Uh…" Sunset felt the collective gaze of the class turn to her. "Maybe Adagio realised the only way to be happy was to give up her power, and the only way she could do that was through death?"

"My God," Ms Cheerilee whispered. Sunset winced. Was she about to be found out? But Ms Cheerilee continued, "Look what we've done! We're breaking through! Oh, Sunset, Adagio would be so proud of you! Of all of you!"

"By the end of the session, everyone had agreed that no one had thought a pretty girl like Adagio could touch anyone's heart (Timber and Tornado made more than a few jokes about Adagio _touching_ them), but Adagio had made them all better people. Adagio was still hanging around behind Sunset, and as everyone spoke about how Adagio had touched them, she commented on it, becoming increasingly delighted. Twilight compared Adagio to the dove that sings outside her window, and Adagio murmured "Holy crap! This is awesome!" Micro Chips said she was like a twin from whom he'd been separated, and Adagio said loudly into Sunset's ear, "Jesus Christ!" making her wince at the volume.

Sunset thought it was over, but then of course Rainbow Dash said Adagio was like the horse she'd never gotten for Christmas, and Adagio climbed onto a desk and screamed "I'm bigger than John Lennon!"

Sunset _hated_ assemblies.

* * *

They had Tuesday off for the funeral. Sunset found herself cringing all the way through the ceremony. She could feel Adagio's ghost's eyes on her the entire time, as the girl lurked by the basin of Holy Water at the back. She decided to ignore her and tuned in to what the priest was saying, but it wasn't much better:

"I blame not Adagio, but our society. The blame does not rest with her, but with the violence found in the MTV video games that tell young people suicide is the only way out. Do you, I ask you, know the name of that righteous dude, who is the saviour of us all? It's Jesus Christ, and he's in The Book."

As Sunset waited to go up to the coffin and pay her last respects to Adagio (another sick twist), she could almost hear the thoughts buzzing around everyone else's heads as they knelt next to the open casket. Adagio was wearing a long white dress with a scarlet sash. Bizarrely, her signature ruby necklace was missing. Sunset belatedly remembered she'd taken it off before the party, worried it would be lost or stolen.

Sonata was kneeling next to the coffin, and Sunset could hear her muttering, "Oh God, this is a tragic thing and sometimes I have a hard time dealing with it and stuff. Please send Adagio to Heaven and all that."

Moon Dancer, a girl Sunset had once been in a study group with, was next. "Dear God, please make sure that this never happens to me because I don't think I can deal with suicide," she whispered. "Also please fast-track my acceptance into an Ivy League school, and please let it be Hoofard. Amen." Sunset wrinkled her nose in disgust. Nice.

Timber was even worse. The priest had wandered off to speak to Adagio's grief-stricken parents, and he was making crass jokes about her suicide. "Jesus and God in Heaven… man, why'd you have to kill such a hot snatch? …it's a joke, man. Jeez, people are so serious. Hail the father, the son and the Holy Spirit, and pray for all the sinners… so that we don't get caught. Another joke, man!"

Aria's prayer was a shock, but when Sunset thought about it, she really wasn't surprised at all. "I prayed for the death of Adagio Dazzle many times, and I felt bad every time I did it but I kept doing it anyway. Now I know that you understood everything. Praise Jesus. Hallelujah!" She said it quietly, but Sunset was standing right behind her, and she could hear everything.

Now it was Sunset's turn. "Hi… sorry," she winced. "I didn't mean for Adagio to die… everything just got out of hand. I just want my high school to be a nice place… did that sound bitchy?" It sounded as though she felt it was her fight with Adagio that she felt guilt over - when in reality, it was so much more. She got up and headed over to the Holy Water, where Adagio's ghost was still glaring at her.

"God, is this turnout lame or what?" Adagio groaned. "There should be at least seventy more people here to mourn me."

Sunset rolled her eyes. "Maybe if you weren't such a bitch to all of them, more people would have come. Hey, maybe you'd still be alive."

Adagio glared at her. "God, do you know how boring my afterlife is, Sunset? If I have to sing 'Kumbaya' one more time… Thanks for offering me such a boring post-life experience."

Sunset turned and left the church. Adagio Dazzle was dead and nothing could change that. Not even her regret at summoning the most annoying ghost ever.


	7. At The Cemetery

**Author's Warning: this chapter includes attempted sexual assault and gratuitous reference to testicles.**

* * *

"At times like this, people choose to focus on their grief," Aria Blaze was saying into the reporter's microphone. She looked unbelievably smug. "Well, I hate those people. Because I am a very positive person!" Aria sighed dramatically. "I still remember the good old days, like when Adagio and I got our ears pierced at the mall -"

Flash flipped the channel, only to find Aria's face still on the screen. She was wearing a different outfit, and the microphone had a different logo on it, but apart from that there was no difference. "I can still hear those late night phone calls -"

Flash flipped the channel again, and once again it showed a news crew interviewing Aria Blaze, only this one was French. "Nous avons tant de bons souvenirs d'Adagio Dazzle ici à Canterlot. Elle a toujours fait une fête, et elle a toujours apporté assez de Corn Nuts pour tout le monde. Elle était si généreuse -"

"Turn it off! Turn it off, oh my God," Sunset groaned. Flash obligingly turned the television off and slung a comforting arm around the redhead. It was a week since Adagio had 'committed suicide', and Sunset just wanted to get away from it all. She really didn't need to constantly be reminded that she was technically a murderer.

The door bounced open, and a man raised his eyebrows at Flash and Sunset. Flash grinned at him, but his smile didn't reach his eyes. "Young man, I didn't hear you come in," he said to the man.

"Gee Pop, how was work today?" the man responded sarcastically, and Sunset realised that this must be Flash's dad. He flung himself into the armchair across from the sofa and tore open the box of beer cans he'd been carrying. "It was terrible," he complained, cracking open a beer. "Some damn tribe of withered old bitches is trying to stop me from blowing up this fleebag hotel, just because Sapphire Shores and her band once took a dump there. Just like Kansas. You remember Kansas, son?"

"The one with the wheat, right?" Flash nodded.

Mr Sentry chuckled. "Yeah, the Save The Memorial Oaks Society. Showed those fucks. Thirty of those Fourth Of July fireworks strapped to the trunk. Arraigned, but acquitted. Goddamn Kansas," he chortled, then turned his attention to Sunset. "Gee Pop, I almost forgot to introduce my girlfriend."

"Sunset, this is my dad, Crash Sentry. Dad, this is Sunset," Flash said emotionlessly. Sunset smiled awkwardly and offered a hand to shake. "Hello."

To her shock, Crash handed her a beer can and grinned lecherously at her. "Drink up, Cutie."

Flash hurriedly took the beer. "No underage drinking in the house, son," he said coldly. Sunset was relieved, but a little scared.

"Fine, fine, Pop," Mr Sentry shrugged. "But can I at least ask my girlfriend to stay for dinner?"

"I don't think that's such a good idea, son." You could have cut the tension in Flash's voice with a knife.

"Aww, come on, Pop! Don't be such a square!"

Sunset hurriedly got up from the couch. "My mom's making my favourite meal tonight," she improvised. "Spaghetti. Lots of oregano."

"Nice!" Flash nodded. "The last time I saw _my_ mom, she was waving at me out of the window of a library in Texas, right, Dad?"

Mr Sentry's voice flattened. "Right. Son."

"Okay, then," Sunset said nervously. She offered a grimace to Flash. "I'll see you tomorrow?" When no one responded, she backed out of the room and let herself out. When she got home, she scribbled a new entry in her diary.

 _October 1st, 1989_

 _Dear Diary -_

 _Flash's father will **not** be speaking at our wedding._

The sound of the phone ringing cut through the quiet of her room. To her shock, Sonata Dusk was on the other end of the line.

"Sunset? I'm at the cemetery. I need your help."

"Sonata? Are you OK?" It must have been bad if Sonata was calling a social pariah.

"It's Tornado, he… just, hurry up and get here, OK?" Sonata hung up. Sunset sighed and hurried to the cemetery.

* * *

When she got there, Sonata was waiting in Aria's Jeep, gnawing on her lower lip. Sunset hurried over to her, and the blue-haired girl rolled the window down.

"I got here as quickly as I could. Is Tornado OK?" Sunset asked urgently. She may not have cared much for the football player, but one death this week was enough for Canterlot.

"He passed out," Sonata explained. "Tornado, Timber, Aria and I came up here to pour a jug of Thunderbird over Adagio's grave. Y'know, from her homies?" Sunset quirked an eyebrow, and Sonata continued, "But Timber and Tornado drank it all. Timber and Aria went off together, and then Tornado started grabbing me, and he wouldn't stop."

Sunset, who had no idea where this was going, interrupted her. "After everything that happened at Timber's party, why did you call _me_ of all people?"

"Well, that was the deal," Sonata said, as though Sunset was dim to have missed it. "If I got _you_ here, Tornado promised to leave _me_ alone."

Sunset blinked slowly, almost unable to believe it. "So _you_ avoided date-rape by volunteering _me_ for date-rape?" Her hands were shaking in anger at Sonata's nerve.

Sonata grimaced. "God, you make it sound _ugly_."

Sunset turned on her heel. "I'm leaving now."

Neither of them had noticed Tornado emerging from behind the car until his loud, drunken voice pierced their eardrums. "Heyyyyy, Sunnnnsetttt!" he grinned as he stumbled over to her. "I waited ten whole beers for you." With that charming (note the sarcasm) statement, he promptly collapsed at her feet.

"Goddammit, Timber, I said I'm _done_! Sober up, idiot!" Aria's voice came through the trees. She came stalking out from the woods at the edge of the cemetery, hurriedly buttoning her bright green blazer, and rapped her knuckles sharply on the driver's window of her car. "Sonata, open the door!"

As Sonata flicked the lock off and Aria climbed into the car, Timber came crawling out from between the trees. "Nooooooo, you can't stop now!" he groaned, picking himself up. He was clutching desperately at his crotch. "My balls… they're like this big hydroelectric dam, and the pressure keeps building up, and it _realllly_ hurts!" he slurred. "I mean, that's science, right? I need relief!"

Sunset barely had time to be surprised that he knew the word 'hydroelectric' and had used it correctly before he noticed her. "Well, heyyyyyyyy, Suuuuuuunnnnnsettttt!" he grinned, all thoughts of Aria gone.

Sunset's eyes widened. "Oh no. No way," she gagged. "You've got a left hand. Use it."

"Don't be mean like that!" Timber wailed.

"Yeah, you'll hurt their feelings!" Tornado added.

"What?" Sunset was utterly confused. "Whose feelings?"

"My balls!" Timber wailed. "You're making my balls so blue, you're hurting their feelings!"

"They're hangin' sadly without you!" Tornado confirmed.

"What did they do to you that you hate them so?" Timber moaned. "They long for your embrace, they're warm like mittens. Look at them growing and glowing! Please help meeeeeeeee!"

Sunset ignored him and rapped sharply on the Jeep window. "Aria, Sonata, open the door," she demanded.

The Dazzlings shook their heads.

She rapped again. "Open the door! It's not unreasonable!"

Aria rolled the window down a little and grinned at Sunset. "No way, girl. You're on your own."

"Sunset," Tornado slurred. "Please just say hello! Then maybe you can hold 'em. And never let go!"

"Yeah! Once you were geeky and nerdy, but our balls knew you're really dirty!" Timber said. "You've set them on fire, Sunset. They'll do anything you ask!"

"You can take them home to meet your parents!" Tornado informed her. "They'll dress up all nice, in a suit and a tie and a fancy collar!"

"They can sing a song too!" Timber bragged, and Sunset wasn't even sure he realised he was bragging about his Goddamn _testicles._

"We need you _now_ , Sunset," Tornado insisted. "My pants are rubbin' like a hot cheese grater!"

With that _lovely_ (note the sarcasm) image in her mind, Sunset decided she'd had enough and reached through Aria's window. Aria had two more bottles of Thunderbird in her car, and she grabbed them and shoved them in the direction of the footballers. "Look! Booze! Drink!"

Tornado gasped delightedly. "Thank you so much!"

"You're so welcome!" Sunset said sarcastically. While they were distracted, she climbed up onto the roof of the Jeep.

Timber chugged the Thunderbird and turned to Sunset to slur more about the sexual prowess of his balls. She swore she heard him compare them to Winnie The Pooh and possibly Princess Leia. _Welp, that's my childhood ruined._ By this point, both boys were groaning in pain.

"Ow! Good God, my balls!"

"C'mon Sunset, just a lil' lookit 'em!"

They gurgled like this for about thirty seconds before they both passed out. Sunset hopped down from the Jeep and glared at Aria and Sonata before she left. They didn't deserve a Goddamn speech about morals.


	8. Our Love Is God

_Dear Diary -_

 _Close call at the cemetery last night. Turns out Adagio Dazzle was the only person at Canterlot who could actually control Timber and Tornado. And she is **dead.**_

"Well, look who's having second thoughts."

Sunset looked up from her diary in shock at the familiar haughty voice. Sure enough, Adagio's ghost was glaring at her, still clad in her pyjamas with bright blue stains around her mouth. Sunset glared right back and pointedly continued writing.

 _Technically I did not kill Adagio. I know that - but I still feel bad about it. But not as bad as I should - and that makes me feel even worse._

Adagio did _not_ look happy at the direction the entry had gone in, but Sunset elected to ignore her and instead carefully put the diary in her locker. She had some business to take care of with the other Dazzlings.

Aria and Sonata were standing by Adagio's locker, and Sonata was holding a cardboard box while Aria was moving the contents of the locker into it. Sunset decided to skip the foreplay.

"Hey," she said loudly. "I'm really looking forward to your apology for being two ice-cold bitches last night."

Aria gave her an affronted look. "Um, cleaning out Adagio's locker! A little respect."

Behind Sunset, Adagio's ghost snorted loudly. "Aria Blaze is such a sad little poser." She stepped (can ghosts step? Floated? Drifted?) around Sunset to narrow her eyes at Aria holding one of her sweaters. "Sunset," Adagio complained, "make her stop touching my stuff. Sunset. SUNSET!"

Sunset had had enough. "Shut _UP!_ " she snapped at the ghost.

Aria looked outraged. "You shut up!" she yelled, and Sunset belatedly remembered that only she could see and hear Adagio. Aria had put the sweater into the box and was clutching something in her hand. "I don't have to shut up any more!"

She opened her hand, and a familiar ruby necklace dangled from her fingers. She was staring at it as though it was an amazing prize.

"Hey, that's Adagio's necklace!" Sonata said.

"Shut _up_ , Sonata," snapped Aria.

"Sorry, Aria."

Aria carefully clipped the black satin strap around her neck, before explaining herself. "Adagio Dazzle is gone. It's up to me to replace her."

Sunset raised her eyebrows. "Replace _Adagio_?"

"Please," the ghost snorted.

Aria huffed out a little laugh. "You should be worrying less about me, and more about _your_ reputation. Timber and Tornado have been telling the whole school about your little threeway at the graveyard last night."

There was a loud clatter-splosh from behind Aria. She shut the locker door and turned to grin at Flash, who had just dropped a Slurpee cup on the floor. He had a look of utter disbelief on his face. "Threeway?" he asked Sunset uncertainly, ignoring the blue raspberry ice that was rapidly soaking into his shoes.

It took Sunset a second to find her voice. "What threeway? There was no threeway. Nothing happened! _Nothing_ happened," she assured Flash, who looked relieved.

That wasn't good enough for Aria, though. "I remember differently," she said loudly. Sunset had never seen her so smug. "I seem to recall them having a nice little sword fight in your mouth."

Across from them, Rarity dropped her books with a clatter. " _Sunset Shimmer_ allowed Timber Spruce and Tornado Twister to… do _that_?"

"Oh yeah," Aria 'confirmed'. "It was pretty crowded in her mouth last night."

"What?" Sunset shook her head in horror. "I did not let them do that! That's disgusting!"

"Say what you like Sunset," Aria shrugged. "Doesn't change the fact that everyone at school is convinced that a sword fight went down in your mouth last night."

"Yeah, I hope you rinsed it," Sonata giggled. Sunset couldn't believe that Sonata, who usually avoided rumours about other peoples' sex lives (mainly to avoid awkward questions about her own), was going along with this.

* * *

By the end of the day, everyone was talking about how good little Sunset Shimmer had had a threesome with Timber Spruce and Tornado Twister. Sunset couldn't even sit down without people asking her if she was still sore from last night - apparently Timber and Tornado had been telling people that after the alleged sword fight, they'd both 'gone south' and 'planted their flags'. Someone had even thrown two sword-shaped origamis at her during seventh period.

Aria wasn't helping either. She'd told her entire biology class that Sunset had not only had a threesome with the two football players, but that she was willing do it with anyone. It seemed Flash was the only person who didn't believe the gossip.

By the end of the day, Sunset just felt like crying. She couldn't even walk down a corridor without someone calling her a slut. Flash put an arm around her as they left the building, but Timber and Tornado were waiting for them outside, surrounded by onlookers.

"Hey Sunset!" Tornado guffawed. "Ready for round 2?"

Sunset felt Flash's arm leave her shoulders, and saw his trench-coat fluttering behind him as he dived at Tornado. This time, however, they were ready for it; Timber grabbed Flash's arms and held him in place while Tornado punched him in the stomach. Sunset dived between them, knowing Tornado wouldn't hit a girl if he had an audience, and held up her arms. Timber dropped Flash, and the two jocks slunk away, but Tornado turned back and addressed Sunset. "Whore."

Timber paused to kick Flash in the butt. "Pussy," he laughed, and he and his friend headed off to his car.

The crowd who'd gathered to watch the fight dispersed, and soon Sunset and Flash were the only people left in the parking lot. Sunset dropped to her knees next to Flash, who was clutching his stomach. "Are you OK?" she asked.

Flash nodded. "What about you?" he asked urgently. "He didn't hit you, did he?"

"No," Sunset shook her head. "I'm fine. Super." She felt her eyes welling up, and tears began splashing down her cheeks. "I'm sorry about the waterworks," she whisper-sobbed.

Flash wrapped his arms around her. "They may not have hit you, but they made you cry. But that's going to end tonight. You're the only right thing in this broken world." He tenderly wiped a tear off one of her cheeks. "Let it all out. But when the morning comes, we're going to burn away those tears, and raise our city here." He looked deeply into her eyes. "Our love is God, Sunset."

* * *

They got slushies at the 7-Eleven before they went back to her house, and Flash told her his plan to humiliate them like they'd humiliated her. It involved making a phone call to Tornado, and she would have protested, but he had this _look_ on his face that made her trust him completely. She kissed him quickly before dialing, savouring the press of his lips against her own.

The phone rang once before Tornado picked up with a white-dad-named-Craig-esque "Y'ello?"

Sunset grinned at Flash. "Hi, Tornado," she started carefully. "It's Sunset."

"Oh. Hey Sunset! Dude, get the fuck over here!" By the quiet "Oh, shit, dude!" she knew Timber was there, listening to every word she was saying. She decided to play along.

"Listen," she said seductively, "how did you guys know that it was always a fantasy of mine to have two guys at once?"

"Uh…" Tornado sounded incredibly nervous. "Lucky… guess?"

Sunset giggled girlishly. "Well, if you want it to come true, meet me at the cemetery at dawn." She slammed the phone down.

* * *

At Tornado's house, he and Timber listened in shock to the dialtone. Tornado glanced over at Timber. "Free pussy," he whispered.

"And we don't even have to buy it a pizza," Timber added in wonderment.

Tornado grinned and burst into delighted chuckles. "Punch it in!"

* * *

Sunset laid her head on Flash's chest. He was running his fingers slowly through her hair, and she arched into it like a cat. "We can start and finish wars, Sunset," he breathed. "We're like the asteroid that killed the dinosaurs. They turned to dust, because God said so, to make room in the new world… room for me and you."

Sunset kissed him softly. When she pulled away, he gazed intensely into her eyes. "I worship you, Sunset. If it came down it, I'd trade my life for yours. I love you so much. My heart was a frozen lake, but you made me melt. They hurt you, so we're going to make them disappear."

"And when they're gone," Sunset whispered, "we'll plant our garden in the space they left. Our love is God, Flash."

"Our love is God," he agreed. "C'mon, we have to go to my place to get the piece-de-resistance."

An hour later, they were in Flash's bedroom, and he was showing her the sleek dark metal barrels of two identical handguns. Her eyes were as wide as dinner plates. "Whoa. Are those real?"

Flash nodded. "Yeah. But we're filling them with Ich Lüge bullets."

Sunset quirked an eyebrow. "'Ich Lüge'? What?"

"My granddad scored them in World War 2," Flash explained. "They contain this powerful tranquilliser; the Nazis used them to fake their own suicides when the Russians invaded Berlin. _We_ will use them," he grinned, "to knock out Timber and Tornado just long enough to make it look like a suicide pact, complete with a forged suicide note…"

Sunset realised why he'd asked her to bring paper and a pen. She thought for a minute before grinning and scribbling a note in Tornado's handwriting that she knew they'd hate:

 ** _Timber and I died because we had to hide our gay forbidden love from a_** _un dis **misapproving world. The joy we shared in each others arms was greater than any touchdown, and we hope to go to a place where we can**_ _ecksper experiance **experience that joy forever.**_

 _ **\- Tornado Twister**_

Flash grinned. "I love it! They'll be laughing stocks by morning."

Sunset smiled back. "Let's go hunt some jocks."

* * *

Sunset stood in the part of the cemetery that was the most crowded with trees, carefully tucking the second gun into the back of her skirt. Flash was hiding out of sight behind a Mausoleum marked "Sombre". She'd barely straightened her cardigan when Timber and Tornado came slinking up to her. Tornado smirked at her. "Hey, Sunset."

Timber, for once, was the less subtle of the two. "So do we just, like, whip it out or what?" he asked.

Sunset pretended to be charmed to cover her acid reflux. "Uh, take it _slow_ , Timber. Strip for me."

The boys glanced at each other and grinned. "Okayyyyyyy!" they chorused. They flung off their jackets, and Timber kicked off his shoes while Tornado shucked off his shirt.

"Nice and slow, or what do you want?" Tornado asked. Sunset smirked and was about to answer when Timber interrupted her.

"Wait! What about you?" he asked suspiciously. Sunset hurriedly improvised.

"Well, uh, I was… hoping… that you… could rip my clothes off me, sport."

Timber and Tornado looked delighted at her answer. "Yeah, yeah, we can do that!" Timber nodded, and they both hurried to strip down to their underwear. Sunset worked her face desperately to hold in her laughter at Tornado's Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles boxers and Timber's bright red Y-fronts.

"OK, now close your eyes," she instructed.

They giggled again and closed their eyes. "Okayyyyyy!"

"On the count of three," Sunset said softly. "One…"

"One…" the boys repeated.

"Two…"

"Two…"

Flash emerged from his hiding spot, and he and Sunset pulled out the guns. "Three," Flash said. He shot at Timber, and Sunset shot at Tornado. Timber fell to the floor, unconscious, and Tornado opened his eyes and screamed.

"Holy crap!" he yelled, and turned tail and ran. Flash turned disbelievingly to Sunset.

"You missed him?!"

"Worth it to see the look on his face!" Sunset laughed. Flash shook his head.

"Give me your gun. Stay there, I'll get him." He turned and ran after Tornado. "Tornado? Tornado!"

"You killed my best friend!" Tornado yelled. "Why are you chasing me?!"

Sunset dropped to her knees beside Timber. He was looking awfully still. She carefully felt for a pulse. Her blood ran cold when she couldn't find one. "Timber? You're just unconscious, right? Timber? TIMBER!"

"I was just kidding about the Bo Diddley thing!" Tornado was yelling. Sunset jumped to her feet and rushed after Flash. He had Tornado cornered against a tall chain-link fence.

"Get off the fence, get off the damn fence!" he snapped.

Tornado looked terrifyingly childlike. Sunset couldn't breath. "I don't understand," Tornado whispered.

Flash's eyes were cold. "I told you, Sunset. We can start and finish wars. We're like the asteroid that killed the dinosaurs."

"Stop being a dick!" Tornado yelled.

Flash ignored him. " They'll all turn to dust, because _we_ say so."

"What does that mean?" Tornado demanded.

Flash shot him.

For a second he stood there, the bullet wound a small black 'o' with a scarlet rim in the centre of his chest, and then he toppled.

He was dead – they were both dead.

Flash was staring at the gun with something bordering on reverence. Sunset's sharp yell jerked him awake.

"WHAT THE _FUCK_ HAVE YOU DONE?!"

Flash looked up at her. "They hurt you, Sunset. They deserve this. The note." When she didn't move, he reached into her skirt pocket. She batted his hand away and pulled out the note herself.

"I'll put the note next to Tornado," Sunset whispered hollowly. "You position the guns. Timber's left-handed, remember."

Flash lifted her chin so she was looking at him. "Our love is God, Sunset."

"Our love is God," Sunset repeated after him. He smiled and went to position the guns. When he went back to position Timber's gun, she whispered it again as she placed the note in Tornado's hand.

"Our love is God."

Only this time it sounded more like "Our love is gone."


	9. The Funeral

_October 5_ _th_ _, 1989_

 _Dear Diary -_

 _I'm going steady. Mostly he's awesome - if a bit too rock 'n' roll; lately he's bumped off three of my classmates._

 _God have mercy on my soul._

 _They were just seventeen. They still had room to grow. They could've turned out good - but now we'll never know._

Sunset closed her diary with a sigh. It was the day of Timber and Tornado's joint funeral, and her guilt had not eased up a bit over the three days since they'd died. Or rather, since she'd helped kill them.

Flash plonked himself next to her on the church pew. "There's been an astonishing lack of girls climbing through my bedroom window lately," he teased her.

Sunset didn't find it funny. "Take the hint," she said flatly. Flash raised an eyebrow at her.

"OK, I get it, you're mad -"

"No, I don't think you do!" Sunset said angrily. "'Ich Lüge' bullets?! You lied to me!"

Flash didn't look the slightest bit flustered. "You were lying to yourself," he said. "You wanted them dead too."

"I did not!"

"Did!"

"Did not!"

"Did!"

"Did not!"

Flash grabbed her arms. "Did they make you cry?"

"...Yes."

Flash grinned and gestured to the two coffins at the front of the church. "And can they make you cry now?"

Sunset looked reproachfully at him. "No," she admitted, "but _you_ can."

Flash looked shocked for a millisecond before he shook his head. "Just wait until you see all the good that comes of this!" he said.

"What good can _possibly_ come of this?!" Sunset snarled.

Flash shrugged. "Call me an optimist."

As the pews filled up, Sunset scrawled another entry into her diary before tucking it into her bag:

 _Dear Diary -_

 _My_ ** _Teen Angst Bullshit_** ** _TM_** _has a body count._

* * *

After the priest gave a typical speech about society and sin, Timber and Tornado's respective fathers got up to give the eulogies. Mr Twister wiped a hand across his brow.

"I'm not really sure what I'm supposed to say up here," he sighed. "I'm ashamed, of course. My family has turned this town into a laughing stock. My boy Tornado… wasn't the man I thought he was." He shook his head in disgust. "When I think of the sick, twisted, _disgusting_ things that Tornado and Timber -"

"You wait just a minute, Harry," Mr Spruce interrupted suddenly, to the shock of the congregation. "It is ignorant, hateful talk like yours that makes this place a world that our boys could not live in. They weren't dirty or wrong; they were misunderstood."

Mr Twister looked at him like he'd lost his mind. "Our boys were _pansies_ , Douglas," he said slowly.

Mr Spruce nodded. "Yes! My boy was a homosexual, but God loves him anyway. And so do I! I love my dead gay son!" He turned to address the shocked crowd. "Now, since Timber died, I've been thinking, and praying, and reading some magazines, and I think it's time that we opened our eyes. If God created everyone and everything, then he must have had a reason for making our boys gay, and I trust his judgement completely. I never cared for homos much, in fact I used to see a gay and reach for my gun, but now I realise. It doesn't matter. Timber might have been gay, but he's still my son, and I love him!" He glared at Mr Twister. "Our sons were brave as hell, Harry. They knew that they wouldn't be accepted, so they took a rebel stance when they stripped to their underpants and died together. I can't believe that you, of all people, would still refuse to get a clue, after all that happened between us! Remember that? You and me in the summer of '83!"

Everyone stared at Mr Twister, who looked like a deer caught in headlights. Suddenly he grinned. "That was one helluva fishing trip." To everyone's shock, he reached out and took Mr Spruce's hand. "You're right, Douglas. It's awful that they're gone, but now they can be happy for all eternity, up there in Heaven together. And now we can start to make the world a better place." He addressed the congregation directly. "Go forth and love each other now, like our boys would have done. Together, we can wipe out hate, and we can teach the world to love like we love our dead gay sons."

* * *

After the funeral ended, the church had pretty much cleared out. Sunset and Flash were still seated on their pew though. Flash was grinning smugly at Sunset. "What's that I smell in the air?" he smirked. "Tolerance? Inclusion? _Love?_ Y'know, how often is it that you can say it's a good day to live in Canterlot, Ohio?" He brushed his hair off his forehead. "You're welcome, town."

Sunset stared at her knees. "You don't have to be so smug about it."

Flash shrugged and slung an arm around her. "So, who's next? Aria Blaze? You know she started that threeway rumour. I've taken the liberty of underlining _significant_ passages in her copy of _Moby Dick_ , if you know what I mean," he laughed. Sunset looked at him in horror.

"What?! No! I do not accept this! Three people are dead, that's enough! This ends now!"

"Or what?"

Sunset narrowed her eyes and stood up. "Or I'm breaking up with you."

Flash's face lost all traces of humour. He looked utterly shocked. After a second, he collected himself and stood up. "Look," he said desperately, "every battle has casualties, but that doesn't make the war any less worth fighting! What, you'd rather get caught? Go to jail and give a free pass to the Timbers and Tornados and Adagios of this world, the evil pricks who make life so unbearable that you can't stand to go on living?"

Sunset realised this was more than just anger that she wasn't on board with more murders; it was coming from somewhere deeper. She tilted her head to one side. "Flash," she said softly, "how did your mother die?"

Flash froze. "You really wanna know?" he asked softly.

Sunset nodded. "Yeah, I really do."

Flash was silent, and she wondered for a second if he was pretending she hadn't asked, but then he spoke, in a far quieter, shakier voice than what she was used to hearing from him. "They all said it was an accident," he began, "but she knew what she was doing. She walked into that building two seconds before Dad blew it up, she waved to me out the window, and then - KABOOM!" His shoulders were shaking. "She… _left_ me," he whispered, and he sounded so confused and hurt and childlike in that moment all Sunset wanted to do was reach out and hold him close and never let go. She touched his shoulder lightly.

"Flash, I'm so sorry," she whispered, but Flash shook his head.

"Don't be. Pain gives me… clarity." He turned to face her, and she thought she might have seen tears glistening in his eyes, but they were gone in a second. "Come on. We've got a lot of work to do."

"Work? _What_ work?"

For the first time since she'd known him, Flash looked at her as if he thought she was stupid. "Making this world a decent place for people who are decent," he explained.

Sunset gritted her teeth. "And when does it end?"

"When every asshole is dead!" Flash snapped.

Sunset turned away from him with a loud "Ugh!" She put her hands to her forehead and took a deep breath before she turned back to him. "Fine!" she yelled. "Fine. You're right. We're damaged, and it's because of those assholes. But being damaged doesn't make us wise, Flash! It doesn't mean we get to choose who dies next! Instead of trying to change the world, why can't we just be normal? We could see bad movies together and sneak a beer. Watch TV. Bake brownies. Go bowling. Don't you want a life with me? We're just seventeen, Flash, so let's just be seventeen. That's _all_ I want to do. If you could find a way to let me in, I think I could help mend some of the damage. What do you say?" Flash continued to scowl at the opposite wall, and Sunset decided to try a new tactic. "Look, it doesn't matter how nice the world is. Something or someone can always hurt us."

"People can always vanish," Flash whispered.

Sunset smiled sadly. "Yes. And you're right, it sucks. But we can choose to let go, take a deep breath, and go buy some summer clothes. Maybe on the next holiday we could go camping together…"

"I could teach you how to play poker," Flash said. He looked up at her. There was nearly a smile on his face.

"Yeah," Sunset smiled. "That would be fun. We could do all the cool kid things, like eating chilli fries at the mall and going to crazy golf. Maybe we could even go to Prom."

"We could dance together," Flash agreed.

"We could look into each others' eyes and know we never have to look away," Sunset whispered. "We can be seventeen, Flash. It's not that hard. We can still be kids, that's still a choice we have. What do you think?"

Flash pulled her into a kiss. It was soft and loving but still fierce and passionate - it was perfect. When they pulled away from each other, he was still holding her, as if she might vanish if he let go. "We're damaged, Sunset, but that doesn't matter," he agreed. "Your love's too good to lose."

"As long as we're together and you keep holding me, everything will be fine," Sunset mumbled. "I'll stay if you're choosing me."

"I promise. I'm choosing you. We can be seventeen, Sunset. You're the one I choose."

"And you're the one I choose."

He kissed her one last time before he left; she stared after his retreating, trench-coat-clad figure with a mixture of adoration and relief, before turning back to collect her coat and bag.

"And they all lived happily ever after," Adagio Dazzle's voice cut through the silence of the empty church. Sunset jumped and turned to where the ghost was perched cross-legged on the pew across from the one she'd been sitting on. "Do you think it all just goes back to normal now?" Sunset's face must have betrayed her annoyance and hurt because Adagio scoffed loudly. "Hey, don't give me that wounded look. You know exactly what he is, and you love it."

"Just. Stop. Talking," Sunset ground out. Adagio laughed, a bizarre echoing cackle.

"Only a true dead best friend would give it to you straight."

"Sunset?" Apparently they weren't alone. Sunset turned to see Twilight gazing at her. "I need your help with something."

"Sure," Sunset said surprisedly. It had been ages since she'd actually talked to Twilight now that she thought about it. "What's up?"

"Something doesn't add up," Twilight said. She was tapping her index fingers together nervously. "I think Timber and Tornado were… murdered."

Sunset choked on her own breath in shock and terror. Adagio, meanwhile, looked delighted. "Well, fuck me gently with a chainsaw!" she grinned. "Nancy Drew is onto you, Sunset."

Sunset hurriedly shook her head as if trying to dispel water from her ears. "Why would you think that?" she asked Twilight desperately. "They found a suicide note."

"It could have been faked!" Twilight pointed out. "I mean, you forge stuff all the time, right?"

Sunset felt her mouth run dry. Adagio laughed again. "I am in love with this dweebette!" she grinned.

"Twilight, that's ridiculous. Who'd want to kill Timber and Tornado?" Sunset asked hurriedly.

"Well, I was thinking your friend Flash. You saw how he went after them in the lunch room."

"Yeah, man, that sucked," came a familiar voice. Sunset glanced over at the source and felt her jaw drop. Two new ghosts had joined Adagio: Timber and Tornado.

Twilight was oblivious. "There's something off about Flash Sentry."

Timber cackled. His laugh had the same otherworldly quality as Adagio's. "Ha! Sunset's going to lady prison!"

Tornado looked delighted. "Girl on girl! Punch it in!"

In possibly the bizarrest and simultaneously lewdest display ever, they made scissor shapes with their fingers and began locking them together, while doing impressions of female sex noises. This was almost worse than Timber asking her if he should "just whip it out". Sunset shuddered.

Twilight was still talking. "I wanna look in Flash's locker."

"Oh, I bet there's all kinds of interesting things in there," Adagio smirked. "Some 'Ich Lüge' bullets, maybe?"

Sunset shivered, but elected to ignore the ghosts. "Twilight, this is a pretty wild theory," she said warningly.

Twilight shook her head. "I don't care what they were saying at the funeral! Timber was not gay. I'd stake my life on it."

Tornado laughed delightedly. "Haha! Timber's a dork magnet!"

Timber's cheeks flushed angrily. Since he was translucent, it had an oddly mesmerising effect. "Yeah, well at least I don't have a skid-mark!" he snapped, pointing at the back of Tornado's boxers.

Tornado twisted around to try and see for himself. "What?"

"Skid-mark!" Timber smacked at Tornado.

Tornado slapped back. "Dork magnet!" They began swatting at each other pathetically.

"Skid-mark!"

"Dork magnet!"

"Skid-mark!"

"Dork magnet!"

"STOP IT!" Sunset yelled. Timber and Tornado stopped slapping at each other, shrugged and vanished. Twilight was looking at her like she'd lost her mind.

"Stop _what?_ " she asked. "Sunset, what's wrong with you?"

"Nothing, nothing," Sunset assured her. "I'm just trying to understand. Timber was gay, why would you think anything else?"

Twilight's face took on an oddly dreamy expression. "He kissed me, remember? On the kickball field."

"Yeah, in kindergarten," Sunset snapped. Much as she loved Twilight, this was getting ridiculous.

"My heart knows the truth!" Twilight snapped back.

"It's time to choose, Sunset," Adagio told her. She was enjoying this far too much. "It's eat or be eaten."

"Why would he write me that note if he didn't still feel something?" Twilight continued.

"You know what to say…" Adagio whispered.

"Why would he invite me to his homecoming party?" Twilight demanded. "I'm going to confront Flash."

"No!" Sunset gasped. Adagio smirked.

"Do you have the guts?" she asked quietly.

Sunset took a deep breath, tossed her hair, and did her best impression of Adagio's fake laugh. "Oh, Twilight. You floor me, you really do," she laughed, hating herself for it.

Twilight blinked uncertainly. "What…?"

Sunset folded her arms and planted her feet firmly on the ground. She smirked as cruelly as she could. "Timber didn't write you that love note," she admitted. "I did."

Twilight shook her head slowly. "No," she said disbelievingly.

"Yuh-huh. You said it yourself, I forge stuff all the time. The whole school was in on the joke; the Dazzlings put me up to it. No one laughed harder than Timber." Sunset gave Twilight a bittersweet smile. "He was a dick. He's dead. _Move on._ "

Twilight opened her mouth to say something, but closed it again with an audible clunk. She shook her head again, before turning tail and running out of the church. Sunset's confident façade vanished and she turned to Adagio with wide eyes. "Shit," she hissed. "SHIT!" Adagio's raised eyebrow didn't even waiver. Sunset hurried to justify herself. "I _had_ to hurt her. If Flash ever caught her snooping around his stuff, he'd -"

"Kill her?" Adagio interrupted. She pretended to look betrayed. "But I thought the desperado hung up his six guns. Don't you trust him?" With that she vanished, leaving Sunset to wonder if Adagio was right.


	10. Turn Off The Cameras

"There you are, Sunset!" Ms Cheerliee's voice said perkily. Sunset jumped; it was Monday lunchtime and she'd been hiding out in the library. Ms Cheerilee was hosting some kind of rap-session in the cafeteria, and she'd wanted to avoid it at all costs. "The assembly is about to start! We need you in the cafeteria ASAP! Where's your song book?"

"Right, this thing," Sunset said as cheerily as she could. It was even worse than just an assembly; Ms Cheerilee had prepared a special song for them to sing. "Sorry, I, uh, forgot. And I don't have my songbook."

"Not a problem, sweetie!" Ms Cheerilee dragged her back in the direction of the cafeteria. "I have plenty more!" Sunset had thought it couldn't get any worse, but it could; the cafeteria was full of TV crews and camera equipment. She suppressed a groan. Ms Cheerilee didn't notice.

"Come on, kids!" she was saying. "Show a little hustle!" Sunset felt like throwing up. Flash appeared out of nowhere and wrapped his arms around her waist.

"Is this as good for you as it is for me?" he laughed. He pressed a kiss to her hair and vanished into the crowd, probably hopeful of turning it into a riot.

Ms Cheerilee, meanwhile, was standing atop a table, wielding a microphone. "Hello, Canterlot!" she said. Sunset couldn't deny it, people that perky freaked her out a bit. "Now, whether to kill yourself or not is one of the most important decisions a teenager can make." The entire room made a sound Sunset took to mean _Dafuq?_ Ms Cheerilee nodded importantly. "I know, I know. But I am taking a stand against it! Do you know what I'm gonna do right now?"

"Kill yourself on stage?" Flash interrupted delightedly. He really was enjoying this _far_ too much.

Ms Cheerilee glared. "That's not productive, Mr Sentry. No, I am going to show you all a new coping method! My study at Berkneigh was in Paediatric Psychoanalytical Musicology, and it was _very_ well-regarded. Because the way to eliminate suicide is to first eliminate _fear_. By creating a safe environment we have nothing to fear, and we have no reason to commit suicide! None of you deserve suicide, because you're all beautiful!"

Sunset cringed when the teacher began to sing into her microphone.

" _Deep inside of everyone,_

 _There's a hot ball of shame:_

 _Guilt; regret; anxiety;_

 _Fears we dare not name!_

 _But if we show the ugly parts_

 _That we hide away,_

 _They turn out to be beautiful_

 _By the light of day!"_

Sunset realised she was supposed to be singing the chorus, and hurried to open her songbook.

" _Why not shine, shine, shine a light?_

 _(On your deepest fear!)_

 _Let in sunlight now!_

 _(And your pain will disappear!)_

 _Shine, shine, shine,_

 _And your scars and your flaws_

 _Will look lovely because you shine!"_

Ms Cheerilee struck a pose that was about 20 years too late. " _Shine a light!"_

She'd thought it couldn't get any more cringe-worthy than this, but apparently Ms Cheerilee had recruited students to solo for her. Rainbow Dash and Bulk Biceps were currently singing the second verse with Pinkie Pie and Microchips:

 **Rainbow Dash:** _Every day's a battlefield when pride's on the line!_

 **Bulk Biceps:** _I attack your weaknesses…_

 **Both:** _And pray you don't see mine!_

 **Micro Chips:** _But if I share my ugly parts…_

 **Pinkie Pie:** _And you show me yours…_

 **Micro Chips and Pinkie Pie:** _Our love can knock all walls down…_

 **All four:** _And unlock all our doors!_

Once again Sunset grudgingly joined in with the chorus, but Ms Cheerilee wasn't done. There was a middle eight (that was more like a middle 16) and she talked all the way through it.

"Who wants to share what's in their heart? No volunteers?" Ms Cheerilee ignored the several hands that had shot into the air. "Fine, I'll start. My name is Ms Cheerilee and I live alone; my husband and kids have left. In the 60s, love was free - that hasn't really worked out all that well for me. The revolution came and went, and I tried to change the world but made no impact. I've struggled with despair - I joined a cult, shaved my head, I chant and pray but no one's there to hear me - so, Whooves?" She turned to glare directly into the camera. "I'm ending our affair. And I faked it. Every single time." Ms Cheerilee giggled and whooped, ignoring the shocked faces of her students. Talk about oversharing. "Wow, kids, we're really letting each other go, huh? That feels fan-freakin'-tastic! Get ready for a big finish! One, two, take me home, kids!"

" _Why not shine, shine, shine a light?_

 _(On your deepest fear!)_

 _Let in Sunlight now!_

 _(And your pain will disappear!)_

 _Shine, shine, shine,_

 _And your scars and your flaws_

 _Will look lovely because you shine!_

 _You shine a light!_

 _Shine, shine, shine a light!_

 _Shine, shine, shine a light!_

 _Shine, shine, shine a light!_

 _Shine, shine, shine a light!_

 _Shine, shine, shine a light!_

 _Shine, shine, shine a light!_

 _Shine, shine, shine a light!_

 _Shine a light! Yeah!_

Ms Cheerilee ended the song, and everyone began shouting at once about their fears, hoping to be picked out by a TV crew, but the voice that stood out the most was Sonata Dusk, and that's because no one was expecting her to say what she said right then:

"I've thought about killing myself!"

The entire crowd turned to stare at the Head Cheerleader, who was playing nervously with her ponytail. She looked shocked at herself that she'd said it.

Most shocked of all was Aria Blaze. Her jaw had practically hit the floor, and she was glaring at Sonata. "What the _hell,_ Sonata?"

"No, no, Sonata…" Ms Cheerilee said excitedly. "Keep going!" She pushed Sonata towards the largest TV camera of all. The blue-haired girl tripped towards it and stared into it like a deer caught in headlights.

"Sonata, get back in line!" Aria snapped, but Ms Cheerilee glared at her.

"Zip it!" the teacher said fiercely. She turned back to Sonata. "Go on, Sonata. There's nothing to be afraid of. It's just you, me, and your classmates who love you!"

Sonata took a deep breath. "My sort-of-boyfriend killed himself because he was gay for his linebacker," she began, "and my best friend seemed to have it all together, but she's gone too. And now my stomach is hurting worse and worse, and every morning I'm on the bus to school and my heart is pounding and it's like, 'Jesus, I'm on the frickin' bus again because all of my rides to school are _dead_!" She began to play nervously with her collar.

"It's like we're all floating in this tiny lifeboat on this enormous black ocean, and the boat is getting lower and lower in the water. It's cold and clammy and crowded, and everyone smells desperate, because we're going to sink any minute, and we all know that someone has to go. And everyone's pushing and fighting, and there's this huge storm approaching with nowhere to hide!" She gulped. "And I know that if I say the wrong thing or I wear the wrong outfit, I'll be the one the captain chooses to throw overboard! Well, who made _her_ captain, anyway?" Sonata shook angrily, but her anger was gone as quickly as it had come. "The weakest person has to go. And every day I'm feeling more and more like _I'm_ the weakest. _I'm_ going to be the next one overboard."

All Sunset wanted to do was run over and comfort Sonata, but Aria's furious voice stopped her. "What's your _damage_ , Sonata?" she snarled. "Are you saying that Canterlot High isn't a nice place?"

"Aria!" Ms Cheerilee interrupted, but Aria barrelled on regardless.

"Where's your school spirit?" She shook her head disapprovingly. "You don't deserve to wear Canterlot colours."

"Don't be mean-spirited!" Ms Cheerilee tried.

Once again, Aria ignored her. "Why don't you hop in your little lifeboat, and catch a gnarly wave over to _Townsville_?" Sonata hurriedly turned away from the camera and from Aria. She was visibly shaking.

"Aria, that's enough!" Ms Cheerilee snapped, but it wasn't Aria who delivered the final blow; Rainbow Dash had seen the unshed tears that were glistening in Sonata's eyes.

"Aww, look, Sonata's gonna cry!" she laughed.

Sonata's eyes widened, and she gave a little sob before fleeing from the cafeteria. Ms Cheerilee looked furious.

"Young lady, you are going to be in detention for the rest of your high school career!" she snapped at Aria, before turning to the TV crews. "Turn off the cameras. Turn them _off_ , Goddammit!"

Sunset had just about had enough. "Is that all you care about?" she snapped at the astounded teacher. "TV cameras?"

Ms Cheerilee gasped. "I care about saving lives!" she insisted. Her 'I'm the adult here so listen to me' tone said it all, though. She continued "Aria Blaze ruined a valuable -"

"'Valuable'?" Sunset shook her head in disbelief. "None of us want this - this _spectacle_! To be experimented on like guinea-pigs? Patronized like bunny rabbits?"

Ms Cheerilee's mouth opened and shut several times in silent outrage. "I don't patronise bunny rabbits!" she said eventually, but she knew as well as Sunset did that her response had been a weak one.

"Sonata Dusk _trusted_ you," Sunset said coldly. "You promised you'd protect her." She didn't even look behind her when she heard Adagio's voice from over her shoulder. She already knew that the ginger, pyjama-clad ghost would be there, delighting in her misery and misfortune.

"This is their big secret," Adagio informed her. "The adults are powerless. Sonata's right. We're alone in the ocean. It's up to us. No one can help us." Sunset nodded imperceptibly, and stared down her shocked teacher.

"You're pathetic," she said quietly.

Ms Cheerilee opened her mouth to respond, but she couldn't think of what to say. She turned and shot out of the room like a cork out of a wine bottle. Sunset herself turned to face her astonished classmates. "You're all idiots!" she informed them.

Flash had actually stopped messing around, but now he stood up and placed a hand on Sunset's shoulder. "Sunset, you should sit," he said sharply.

"No!" Sunset shook him off and tossed her hair back. "Adagio Dazzle was a monster, just like Timber and Tornado!" She took a deep breath before confessing. "They didn't kill themselves. _I_ killed them!"

Her classmates stared back at her in shock. "Sooooo…" Sunset awkwardly tapped her shoe on the lino. "What do you all think about that?"

Silence.

Suddenly, Aria burst out laughing. "God," she chuckled, wiping tears from her eyes, "some people will say anything if they think it will make them popular!" The rest of the students joined in with her laughter, but Sunset had had enough.

"Why do you have to be such a megabitch, Aria?" she snapped. "Why can't you just be a friend?" With that, she stormed out of the cafeteria and down the hall to the girls' bathroom.

At the door, she heard a familiar voice sobbing unhappily. "Stupid child-proof caps!" it whimpered, and Sunset froze outside the door for a second before a _click_ followed by a gulp sent her barrelling through the door.

A horrible sight met her eyes. Sonata was bawling, mascara dripping down her face, her mouth was bulging, and she was gagging. An empty pill bottle dropped to the floor, and Sunset realised what was in Sonata's mouth. The girl had always had trouble sleeping, so she definitely knew that this wasn't how sleeping pills worked.

Sonata was trying to overdose.

Sunset leapt into action, and slapped Sonata's cheeks so that the pills fell out of her mouth. Sonata was still gagging, and Sunset thanked God that at least one good thing had come of Aria's bulimia; she knew how to make someone throw up.

She took a deep breath, and stuck her fingers down Sonata's throat.

Sonata's body shook, and she threw up into the sink. When she'd finished, Sunset put an arm around her, but Sonata threw her off.

"What are you trying to do?" Sonata snapped. "Kill me?"

"What are _you_ trying to do?" Sunset shot back at her. "Sleep?"

Sonata leaned against the wall and slid down until she was sitting. "Suicide is a private thing," she sniffled quietly.

Sunset snorted and sat next to her. "What, throwing your life away to become a statistic in US-fucking-A Today? That's, like, the _least_ private thing I can think of."

"What about Adagio?" Sonata asked softly. "And Timber and Tornado?"

Sunset looked deep into Sonata's wide magenta eyes. "If all your friends jumped off a bridge, would you?"

"Probably."

"Oh." Sunset had not been expecting that answer. She put an arm around her friend again, and this time Sonata didn't throw her off. "If you were happy all the time, you wouldn't be human," Sunset assured her. "You'd be a game show host."

Sonata wiped her face. "It's just… difficult, I guess," she said hollowly. "I was probably the last person to speak to Adagio before she killed herself, when she gave me a ride home." Sunset had to remind herself that Sonata didn't know anything about the true nature of Adagio's death as the cheerleader kept talking. "And I was the last girl Tornado had sex with, and he killed himself, like, two days later. I can't help but feel it's my fault."

All Sunset could do was stroke Sonata's hair and allow her to cry on her shoulder. She had no idea what to say. 'I'm sorry' didn't really seem to cover it. 'I'm sorry you feel it's your fault that your friends committed suicide when it's actually my fault because I killed them'?

The blue-haired girl hiccupped. "I could hear her, you know," she whispered. "Aria. When I was looking for the bottle. She said 'Aw, look, Sonata's going to whine all night, like there's no Santa Clause.' She was telling me that I was off the team, that I was worthless, and I was going to die alone. I know it was in my head, but it just felt so _real_."

"She's wrong," Sunset said fiercely. "You matter, Sonata. You're important. You're definitely not worthless. And hey, for what it's worth, you may be off Aria's team, but you can always be on mine." She wasn't sure exactly what she meant by her 'team' but it made Sonata give a watery giggle.

They sat there in the bathroom for what seemed like an eternity, before Sonata wiped her face and got to her feet. She helped Sunset up, and then pulled her into a fierce hug. "Thanks for coming after me," she whispered, and Sunset knew her own cheeks were damp when she whispered back.

"You're welcome."


	11. The Favour And Its Cost

Flash applauded slowly when he entered his room and saw Sunset sitting on his bed. "Congratulations," he laughed. "You know, you had me worried with your little confession in the cafeteria, but you pulled it off. Best place to hide is right in plain sight."

Sunset glared half-heartedly at him. "I wasn't trying to hide," she said flatly.

Flash continued as if she hadn't interrupted him. "Why did you have to go and mess with Sonata Dusk, though?" he demanded. "One more dead Dazzling is a _good_ thing!"

Sunset stood up furiously. "She's my friend!"

"Oh, OK." Flash looked unimpressed. "If she's such a good 'friend', why let Aria Blaze live? The bitch made Sonata want to kill herself! I told you, nothing ever changes!"

"Hey! We are out of the change business!"

"So it doesn't bother you that -"

"It bothers me! But this isn't the right -"

"So you're content to just live with this? In this shithole world?"

"That's not what I'm saying, don't talk over me! You promised me." Sunset gazed at him desperately. "You promised _you'd_ change."

"Hey, Pop, I didn't hear you come in. I was too busy playing _grab-ass_ with my girlfriend," Crash Sentry's voice interrupted them.

Flash turned away from his father. "You know the rules, young man: the bedroom door stays open when company's over." His voice had the same cold quality it always got when Crash entered the room.

Crash didn't seem to notice, or if he did, he didn't show it. "So the judge, God bless him, told those Sapphire Shores groupies to 'slurp shit and die'. I loaded the upper floors with Thermals… set the whole thing off with a Norwegian in the boiler room. Kaboom," he laughed. He held up a VHS tape. "Got the whole thing on video… gonna need my drawstring pants for this one." He turned to go, still chuckling.

Quick as a - well, flash, Flash pulled a gun out of his waistband and fired it at the ceiling. Crash paused in the doorway.

"Goddammit!" he snapped. "No firearms in the house!" He stumped off to watch his video. Meanwhile Sunset looked at Flash in horror.

"Why are you carrying a gun?"

Flash looked unruffled. "It pissed my dad off. It's funny."

"It's not funny!" Sunset snapped. "Why are you carrying a gun? You promised me there would be no more death."

Flash shrugged. "Hey, it's a dangerous world out there."

Something inside of Sunset finally snapped, but instead of unleashing a river of anger, all she felt was cold disappointment. "Because of you," she said quietly. She shook her head. "Don't… don't call me. Don't talk to me."

"Sunset, what -"

"You don't know right from wrong," Sunset said clearly. "We're over." She turned to go."

"Sunset."

"Over." She walked to the door.

"Sunset, come back!"

"Over." She opened it.

"But I love you!"

Sunset turned back to face the boy in the trenchcoat. He was reaching out to her desperately with both hands - but he was still holding the gun. She shook her head sadly.

"Goodbye, Flash Sentry."

The door shut behind her. Flash collapsed onto his bed. "Fuck."

* * *

 _"Whoa-oh-oh-oh-oh!_

 _Whoa-oh-oh-oh-oh!_

 _Hey yo, Wondercolts, tell me, what's that sound?_

 _Here comes Canterlot, coming to put you in the ground!_

 _Go! Go! Wondercolts! Give a great big yell!_

 _Canterlot will knock you out and send you straight to Hell!"_

There was going to be a pep rally at Canterlot High School on Friday the thirteenth of October, and the cheer squad was busy practising the Canterlot Spirit Chant. It was Thursday, and Twilight had to admit that it rather worried her when she heard Sonata yelling at someone that the words were "what's that sound?" rather than "what's going down?" She padded silently down the corridor to her locker; it was after school had gone out, but she'd stayed late to do some work in the chemistry labs. As she rounded a corner and crossed to the stairs, she heard the familiar clip of high heels on lino - the kind that meant _all nerds evacuate immediately for your own safety_. She dived back around the corner and peaked around it.

"I now know thee, clear spirit," said a male voice, and it was so close Twilight nearly jumped out of her own skin. It wasn't coming from behind her, though; it was coming from the corridor she was peaking into. The high heels stopped, and she figured the boy must have been addressing the wearer.

"That's from _Moby Dick_ ," Aria Blaze's voice said uncertainly. Sure enough, when Twilight glanced around the corner again, there was the new queen bee of the school, clad in a white skirt suit with a wide red belt at her waist. As always, Adagio's ruby necklace glittered at her collar. There wasn't a trace of green on her.

A boy in a dark coat got up from the stairs and offered her an envelope. "I appreciate a well-read woman," he said, and Twilight realised it was Flash Sentry. Sunset's boyfriend. Potentially hitting on another girl.

Aria didn't see it that way though. "What's in the envelope?" she asked suspiciously.

"You're going to want to see it."

Twilight watched as Aria took the envelope and carefully slit it open. Her violet eyes widened. "Shit. Oh, shit!"

Flash shrugged. "Just a tangible reminder that, at around age six I'm guessing, you and Twilight Sparkle were _friends_."

"Where did you get these?" Aria demanded. "Did _Sunset_ give them to you?" Flash simply continued to look at her in an unnerving manner. Eventually she cracked. "What do you want? Money?"

Flash grinned. "A favour."

Aria looked disgusted. "No way."

"Not _that_ kind of favour," Flash snapped, sounding disgusted himself. "I need a petition signed. Check it out." He showed her another piece of paper. She raised her eyebrows at it. "See, no one listens to the psycho-trenchcoat dude. But they'll listen to you. Of course, if you don't want to do it, that's fine too. But I bet Wallflower Blush, the yearbook editor, would love the pic of you, Twilight and Timber in the bath together as much as I do. It's adorable, isn't it? Bet it would get a nice spot in the yearbook. Hell, she might want to do a whole spread with these!"

Aria stuffed the pictures back into the envelope and snatched the petition away from him. "I don't know why you bothered to go to all this effort to blackmail me," she muttered. "This petition idea isn't half bad. And those photos are ancient history. No one cares about the past. No one cares about Twilight _Dorkle_." She dropped the envelope and flounced away with the petition clutched tightly to her chest.

Flash was bending down to pick up the envelope when he noticed Twilight. They briefly made eye contact, and he knew immediately that she'd heard the whole thing. He left the envelope on the ground and turned to leave. When he reached the double doors, he glanced over his shoulder. Sure enough, Twilight had padded down the stairs and had picked up the envelope. For some reason, the sight made him feel incredibly sad, and he left quickly.

* * *

Twilight walked through the town, not stopping until she got to the Old Mill Bridge. She stood in the centre of the arching stone walkway, and gazed into the water rushing past beneath her feet. She realised after a little while that she was crying.

In kindergarten, all those years ago, there had been a sweet little boy named Timber who said that Twilight was smart. He was good at sports and people liked him, and at naptime once they'd shared a mat. Twilight hadn't slept; instead she'd sat and watched the rise and fall of his chest as he dreamed for nearly half an hour before he woke up.

One time he'd pulled a scab off during a game of kickball, and ran up to her, pressing it into her hand and quickly kissing her before running back to the game. Twilight carefully put the scab into a locket, and she'd worn it around her neck for a year. The scab was long gone but Twilight still held onto the locket; the metallic weight over her heart was comforting. It reminded her of when Timber hadn't cared if his girlfriend was thin or pretty or wore cool clothes. He'd been hers until they'd hit first grade - and then he'd woken up to the real world.

She knew it was stupid to have carried a torch for him all this time, especially now when he was both gay and dead, and apparently hadn't thought of her in years other than as a joke, but last night she'd dreamed that a beautiful white Alicorn (who'd looked weirdly like Principal Celestia) had flown down into her homeroom with Timber on its back. He'd held out his arms to her, and helped her on behind him, and together they'd sailed above the gym and the faculty parking lot.

It was unrealistic. But it had been lovely.

Of course, now it was obvious how the world worked: certain boys were just meant for kindergarten, while certain girls were just meant to be alone. Timber was dead. Sunset didn't care. Twilight was that certain girl.

A strange sensation came over her just then; a completely overwhelming desire to see Timber. He'd been the only one who'd ever cared, even if it had been a long time ago.

And there was only one way to do that.

Pulling a spare piece of paper out of her pocket, along with a pen and a plastic wallet (the kind you put in a ringbinder to keep your papers dry), she scribbled the following note.

 _Dear Canterlot -_

 _I believe that any dream worth having is a dream that should not have to end. So I'm going to build a dream that I can live in, and this time I'm never waking up._

 _I'm going to a new kindergarten - somewhere where what you wear and like doesn't matter._

 _And naptime is going to be centuries long._

 _\- Twilight Sparkle_

Twilight carefully tucked the note into the envelope, next to the pictures. Then she swung her legs over the railing, and let go.

She couldn't wait to see her Timber again.


	12. Keep It Together

On Friday, Sonata invited Sunset over for a game of croquet. It was just the two of them; Sonata had decided she was no longer going to put up with Aria abusing her friendship. But apparently no one had informed Aria.

"Hey guys!" Aria Blaze's voice came from the open French windows of Sonata's house. She was carrying a clipboard and offering a bright smile. To Sunset's shock, she was dressed all in red - even more red than Adagio herself had worn. "Missed you after eighth period today!"

Sunset carefully hit her croquet ball through a hoop before replying. "Yeah, we were avoiding you," she said bluntly.

"What you did to me sucked," Sonata added. Sunset was proud that she'd finally stood up to Aria. Aria herself scowled and rolled her eyes.

"Whatever, skip the foreplay. I just need you to sign this." She offered them the clipboard and a scarlet pen.

"What is it?"

"It's a petition for MTV to throw a Spring Fling Blowout at Canterlot High in order to raise suicide awareness," Aria announced. "I'm going to make an inspirational speech about it at the pep rally tonight."

Sunset wrinkled her nose. "Ugh, count me out," she said in disgust.

"Me too," Sonata agreed. "I don't need more cameras in my face asking about my suicidal thoughts."

Aria did not look amused. "Sunset, why are you pulling my dick?" she snapped. "It was your boyfriend's idea."

Sunset felt a blanket of unease settle over her. "Flash Sentry?"

"He made up the signature sheet and everything."

Sunset shook her head. "Look, I don't know what Flash is up to, but if you know what's good for you you'll throw that clipboard away."

Aria looked at her as if she'd popped a zit right there. "Not a chance. I'll just fake your signature like I did with Twilight Dorkle; she's in no state to sign after what happened last night."

Sunset grabbed Aria's shoulder. "What? What happened last night?" she asked urgently.

"It was on the radio," Aria grinned. "She took a belly flop off the Old Mill Bridge holding a suicide note!"

Sunset felt her heart skip a beat. "Oh my God. She's not…" she couldn't bring herself to finish the question.

Aria shrugged. "Just some broken bones. Just another geek trying to imitate the popular people and failing miserably!"

Sonata understood immediately when Sunset announced that she had to leave. She ran straight to Twilight's house, trying to ignore the ghosts keeping pace with her. It was difficult though, when they were constantly goading her.

"Keep it together Sunset…"

"We knew you'd come far…"

"Now you're truly a Dazzling, does it feel good to be this _gangsta_?"

Mrs Sparkle let her in immediately, announcing that Twilight was in her bedroom, sleeping. She'd been very lucky to have been let out of hospital so quickly, even if she was going to be in a cast for a significant while.

Twilight's face was pale against the backdrop of her dark hair. Her glasses were sitting on the end table, one lens shattered. Sunset could see the top of an alarmingly utilitarian white neck brace, and she felt tears spring to her eyes. She knew this was partially her own fault.

"Twilight… I'm _so_ sorry…"

Timber's ghost sprung up next to her. "Feeling a bit punchy, huh, Sunset?" he laughed.

"Yeah," Tornado agreed. "She ain't lookin' so healthy."

"You're the one who truly earned the ruby necklace, Sunset," Adagio whispered. "Come join Adagio in Hell."

Sunset couldn't stay there. She knew she couldn't get rid of the ghosts, but she couldn't bare to stand there, looking at poor Twilight's deathly pale face. She ran out of the house, barely stopping to say goodbye to Twilight's mother, and sprinted home.

Her parents cornered her the second she walked through the door. "Where have you been?" her father demanded. Sunset opened her mouth to explain, but her mother cut her off.

"We've been worried sick!" she said hysterically. "Your friend Flash stopped by. He told us everything!"

Sunset felt her heartbeat speed up. "Everything?" she whispered.

"Your depression? Your thoughts of suicide?" her dad said incredulously.

Her mom showed her a book. "He even showed us your copy of _Moby Dick_!" she whimpered.

Sunset grabbed the book, flicking through it. She didn't even own a copy of _Moby Dick_ , but sure enough her handwriting was in the margins, and the penmanship was flawless.

Adagio grinned over her shoulder. "He's got your handwriting down cold."

Sunset realised her mother was still talking. "Please, Honey, _talk to us!_ "

Sunset shook her head. "No," she whispered. "No, you'd never understand!"

"Try me!" Mrs Shimmer said. "Look, I've been through everything you're going through right now, and I know it seems impossibly dramatic! Your problems seem like life and death, but I promise they're not!"

The ghosts were standing on the stairs now, grinning gruesomely down at her. "Guess who's outside, Sunset?" they chorused. "Guess who's climbing up to your room and picking the lock on your window?"

Sunset's blood ran cold. "You don't know what my world looks like!" she whispered. She shoved the book back at her mother and dashed up the stairs, ignoring her shouts for Sunset to come back.

"Time's up, Sunset," Tornado taunted. "Go say your prayers. You must be tripping on 'shrooms if you think you can get out of this one."

"Yeah," Timber agreed. "You might as well just send everyone Save The Dates for your funeral."

"You can't keep him out," Adagio whispered as she slammed her bedroom door. "You can try all you like, but it's too late. He got in."

"Knock knock," came a fourth, horribly familiar voice, and Sunset turned to see Flash standing behind her, grinning madly. "Sorry for coming in through the window; dreadful etiquette, I know."

Sunset dived into her walk-in closet and slammed the door. "Get out of my house!" she yelled.

"Hiding in the closet?" Flash laughed. "What are you, a child?"

Sunset felt herself shaking. "I will scream and my parents will come up here and have you arrested!" she yelled.

Flash scoffed. "Sure you will. Come on, Sunset. You know how adults are. And anyway, it doesn't matter."

"What?"

"All is forgiven, baby. Hurry up and get dressed; you're my date to the pep rally tonight!"

"What?" This was the last thing she'd expected him to say. "Why?"

Flash laughed. "Our classmates thought they were signing a petition," and Sunset remembered the clipboard Aria had shoved at her earlier that day, "but you should come see what they _really_ signed! I know you chucked me out like I was trash, and for that you should be dead, but then I thought to myself, _it isn't Sunset's fault. It's all high school. So what if it just went away?_ It's those assholes, Sweetheart. They've brainwashed you. Just stop hiding, and I can make everything better. I fell apart when you left me, Sunset," he spoke quieter. "I was broken up. I punched the wall and broke it, and I cried. But then The Idea came to me, and I stopped crying. Instead, I built a bomb. Tonight, Canterlot High is Vietnam. They'll never see the Senior Prom.

"I was meant to be yours, Sunset Shimmer. We're a unit, you and I. You can't give up on me now; we've started something that needs finishing. And when the gym blows up at the pep rally - like _pchow pchow pchow_ -" he imitated a bomb going off, and Sunset shuddered, "we'll need to cover it up. Hence the petition, signed by everyone. This is the note they really signed:

 ** _"We_** _, the students of Canterlot High,_ ** _will die!_** _Our burnt bodies may finally get through_ ** _to you._** _Your society churns out_ ** _slaves_** _and_ ** _blanks - no thanks!_** _Signed, the students of Canterlot High._ ** _Goodbye!_**

"It's genius, really," Flash continued. "It'll look like a mass suicide. And no one will question it, because _suicide is what teenagers do._ Everyone will die, except you and me. We can snuggle together and watch the school go up in flames, maybe roast some marshmallows. We were meant to be, Sunset. This whole thing is destiny. I'm all that you need. Just open the door and say you're sorry, and we can live happily ever after."

He glared at the black closet door. "Seriously, Sunset, open the door. We can stop fighting if you stop fighting destiny. _I'm all that you need._ Sunset. Sunset! You have until I count to three!" His glare towards the door intensified. "One. Two - fuck it!" He kicked the door open; Flash Sentry had never been particularly patient.

Sunset was in there alright – but the sight of her made his blood freeze in his veins.

She was hanging from her neck, swinging and lifeless.

Flash dropped to his knees. "Oh my God," he whispered. "Sunset… no… you can't leave me alone. You were all I could trust. I can't do this alone!"

He knelt at her feet, shaking, until suddenly he stood and wiped any sign of tears from his eyes. "But I will if I have to!" He turned and climbed back out the window and down the ladder he'd placed against the wall to get in.

Sunset's mother's voice called up the stairs. "Sunset! I made you a snack." Mrs Shimmer opened the door. "Sunset, I've been thinking about what you said earlier," she continued. Then she noticed her daughter's body swinging grimly from the noose in the wardrobe, and she screamed.

Sunset Shimmer opened her eyes.


	13. Damaged

Sunset hurriedly removed her 'noose' and wiggled out of the bra she'd used to attach herself to the clothes bar. "Mom! MOM! It's just a joke, oh my God, I'm so sorry!" she half-yelled at her hysterical mother.

Her mom did not look happy. "It wasn't funny!" she sobbed at her daughter.

"What's going on up there?" Mr Shimmer poked his head into the room, but Sunset didn't have time for this. She picked up the croquet mallet she'd abandoned next to the door and turned to her parents.

"Mom, Dad? I'm sorry," she said clearly. Her parents looked baffled.

"For what?" her mother asked.

"For being a horrible person." Sunset marched out of the room.

"Where are you going?" Mrs Shimmer called after her.

"Out."

"Well, when will you be back?"

Sunset rolled her shoulders back. "That's a good question." She left the house and dashed down the street. As she ran towards the school, her thoughts bounced around her head like a pin ball machine: how she'd wished for someone to help her escape loserdom; how Dazzlinghood was actually worse than obscurity; how Flash had seemed like a salvation, someone strong who would protect her… and instead, she was the one who had to protect everyone from him.

No matter how much you hated the zombies of society, killing them was not the way to fight them. _The only people who deserve to die tonight_ , Sunset thought to herself, _are me and this monster I've created. Heads up Flash; I've come back from the dead to haunt your ass, and you can't hide from me. Maybe we won't see prom night, but you've got one more dance to look forward to; cheek-to-cheek in Hell with this dead girl walking._

No one noticed her when she entered the crowded gym; they were all focussed on the cheerleaders. Sonata was in the centre of the formation. "Come on, Canterlot!" she cheered. "Here we go, here we go now!"

Sunset paused to wonder where Flash might be, but Ms Cheerilee interrupted her train of thought. " _Sunset Shimmer?_ " the teacher gaped in astonishment. "Flash Sentry told me that you committed suicide."

Sunset laughed humourlessly. "Yeah, well, he's wrong about a lot of things."

Ms Cheerilee looked rather annoyed. "I threw together a _lovely_ tribute," she grouched. " _Especially_ considering the short notice."

Sunset really didn't have time for this. "Ms Cheerilee, what's under the gym?" she asked sharply.

The teacher gave her a baffled look. "The boiler room."

Sunset's eyes narrowed. "That's it," she muttered. She turned to leave, but the teacher caught her arm.

"Sunset, what is going on?" Ms Cheerilee demanded.

Sunset pulled her arm away. "No time to talk," she said flatly. "I need to go." She marched out of the gym, and this time Ms Cheerilee didn't stop her.

As she marched down the corridor, croquet mallet over her shoulder, the Canterlot spirit song echoed after her, and she found the words strangely appropriate for her situation:

" _Hey yo, Wondercolts, tell me, what's that sound?_

 _Here comes Canterlot, coming to put you in the ground!_

 _Go! Go! Wondercolts! Give a great big yell!_

 _Canterlot will knock you out and send you straight to Hell!"_

She pushed open the door of the boiler room and padded down the steps. Sure enough, Flash was in the boiler room, crouched over something that looked horribly like a bomb. It was a mark of how much time they'd spent together that she could actually identify what kind.

"A Norwegian in the boiler room," she said softly. "Just like your dad."

Flash spun to his feet, pointing a gun at her. When he realised who it was, he began laughing in disbelief. Unlike Adagio's echoing cackle or Timber and Tornado's churlish snorts, Flash's laugh was deranged and inhuman. "And here I'd thought you'd lost your taste for faking suicides," he grinned.

Sunset gripped the croquet mallet harder. "Step away from the bomb," she said fiercely.

Flash glanced at the bomb on the ground. "What, this little thing? I'd hardly call this a bomb, oh no. This is just to trigger the packs of Thermals upstairs in the gym; now _those_ are bombs." He chuckled manically. "People are gonna see the ashes of Canterlot High School, and they're gonna think 'now there's a school that self-destructed not because society doesn't care, but because that school _was_ society.' You _know_ ," he stared into her eyes, "that the only place Dazzlings and Twilights can get along is in Heaven."

Sunset walked slowly towards him. "You know what I know, Flash?" she asked softly. "I know that wish that your mom had been a little stronger, and that she hadn't killed herself that day. I know that I wish that your dad was a good person. I wish that grown-ups would try harder to understand what teenagers go through. I wish we'd met before your dad convinced you life is war. But most of all, I wish that you would put the gun down, disable the bomb, and come with me. We can still be normal," she whispered. The gun was pressed against her chest, directly over her heart. "It's not too late yet."

Flash glared. "I don't want to be normal. And I wish that I had more TNT."

Then several things happened all at once: Sunset dived for the gun, Flash tried to snatch it away from her, and the spirit song started again above them:

 _"Hey yo, Wondercolts!"_

"Give me the gun Flash!"

 _"Tell me, what's that sound?"_

"Let go of the gun, Sunset!"

 _"Here comes Canterlot!"_

"No, You let go!"

 _"Coming to put you in the ground!"_

"Dammit, Sunset, just listen to me!"

 _"Go! Go! Wondercolts!"_

"This isn't the way, Flash!"

 _"Give a great big yell!"_

"I promise it'll work, Sunset!"

 _"Canterlot will knock you out!"_

"Let _go!_ "

 _"We'll send you straight to -"_

The gun went off.

Both teenagers let go of the gun, and it clattered to the floor. Flash slowly backed away from Sunset, who herself stumbled backwards, looking for something to lean on. Flash looked down at his stomach; there was a hole in his shirt surrounded by a rapidly growing dark stain.

"Was it good for you?" he asked quietly. "Kinda sucks for me." Then his knees gave way, and he collapsed to the ground.

Sunset shook as she realised that this was the fourth body on her hands - and that there was time to make sure there were only five deaths at Canterlot this year instead of hundreds. Stepping over Flash's body, she carefully picked up the bomb. She reckoned that if she took it out to the football field, the blast wouldn't hit the school, so she gingerly carried it back up the stairs, through the halls, and out to the field.

Now all that was left to do was to wait for it to go off. She made a final mental note in her diary:

 _October 13_ _th_ _, 1989 - hey, unlucky date for an unlucky girl, am I right?_

 _Dear Diary -_

 _The irony here is that I won't have time to write a suicide note._

"Smart thinking," came a quiet voice; the last voice she'd been expecting to hear. Sunset turned, and sure enough, Flash Sentry was standing there and staring at her, clutching his stomach, but definitely alive. "Dragging the trigger bomb out to the football field. That way no one else dies – except you if you keep holding onto that thing."

Sunset gazed at him desperately. "People _died._ I have to pay!"

Flash shook his head. "I respectfully disagree," he said quietly. "You're not the one who deserves to die. _I_ am. I destroy things, just like my dad. It never occurred to me to try _building_ anything. But you… you're different." It was only when he carefully lifted the bomb out of her hands that she realised how close he was to her. Just as quickly as he'd approached her, he was backing away, clutching the Norwegian. His blue eyes flickered at her. "Go do something with your life."

Sunset shook herself out of her stunned silence. "Flash -" she started, but Flash shook his head.

"I'm damaged, Sunset. Far too damaged, but you… you're not beyond repair. Stick around here. Try and make it a better place. Please," he implored her, "stand back now." Sunset took five steps backwards, but Flash shook his head. "A little further… I don't know how powerful this blast will be." Another twenty steps, and he was satisfied. He gave her that familiar lopsided grin she'd once loved, before she came to associate it with death and destruction.

"I hope you miss me," he chuckled humourlessly. "God Sunset, I wish I could kiss you one last time. Then you'd know I worship you. I promised you I'd trade my life for yours if it ever came down to it."

Sunset remembered his promise from long ago. "Oh my God," she whispered.

Flash continued, "And once I disappear -"

Sunset shook her head, feeling her eyes fill with tears. "Wait, hold on!" she cried.

Flash shook his head. "Once I disappear, you can make this school a nice place your way," he said forcefully.

"This isn't my way," Sunset whispered. "Not like this, Flash."

Flash smiled and shook his head, glancing down at the timer. It only had about 10 seconds left. "Our love is God," he whispered. "Our love is God," he repeated a little louder. She didn't miss the tremor in his voice. At the end of the day, he was a scared little boy who needed help.

Maybe this would be for the best after all.

Sunset pulled a cigarette out of her pocket. "Say hi to God," she whispered, sticking it between her lips.

* * *

In the gym, everyone jumped at the sound of the explosion outside, thoroughly derailing Aria's speech about suicide awareness.

* * *

Outside, Sunset pushed a strand of charred hair off her cheek. There was blood on her fingers when she glanced at her hand. She sighed and took a drag of her now-lit cigarette, turning to go back inside.

Aria and Sonata waylaid her in the hallway. Sonata threw her arms around her, not caring that she was getting ash all down her blue and gold cheer uniform. "Sunset!" she gasped relievedly. "Where have you been? People were saying you'd killed yourself!"

Aria surveyed her charred clothes and snorted. "You certainly _look_ like Hell."

Sunset blew out a thin stream of smoke. "Yeah? I just got back." She released Sonata, and spun Aria around.

"Hey!" Aria protested. "What are you doing?"

Sunset unclipped the ruby necklace, and carefully hung it around her own neck. "Aria, my love," she grinned. "There's a new sheriff in town." Then she smacked a kiss on Aria's cheek, leaving a dark ashy stain, grabbed Sonata's hand, and pulled her down the corridor and out the door.

"Where are we going?" Sonata asked. Sunset grinned and took another drag of her cigarette.

"Twilight's house."

Twilight was sitting up in bed when they got there. She didn't look much better than earlier, but a little colour had returned to her cheeks at least. She looked terrified when Sunset and Sonata walked in - and with good reason; both were covered in ash, Sunset's hair was a mess and she was fairly sure that her face was bleeding. She mustered the friendliest grin possible.

"Twilight, hey. We were wondering if you were free tonight?"

Twilight raised her eyebrows. "I'm not exactly going anywhere with these," she gestured to the various casts that adorned her body. "Wait…" she narrowed her eyes suspiciously. "Why?"

Sunset sighed. "My date for the pep rally kinda blew -" she hurriedly cut herself off. It was honestly better for everyone if the real reason remained as secret as possible. "…me off," she carefully finished. "So Sonata and I were wondering if you weren't doing anything later, we could maybe pop some Jiffy Pop and rent a video… something with a happy ending?"

Sonata looked happy with this suggestion, but Twilight still looked apprehensive. "Are there _any_ happy endings?" she asked quietly.

Sunset's face softened. "Listen, I can't promise no more Dazzlings. I can't even promise that we'll make it out of this hellhole they call high school alive." After all, between the three of them they had three attempted suicides and one faked one. "But I've really missed you, and I'd be honoured if you'd let me be your friend again." She offered Twilight her hand, and after a moment of hesitation, Twilight took it with the hand that wasn't in a sling.

Sonata took Sunset's other hand, and Sunset squeezed both girls' hands with a smile. Yeah, they were all badly damaged, but maybe they could fix each other. Maybe one day they could change the world, but tonight it was time to kick back and just enjoy being seventeen.

And as the blue-haired, trenchcoat-wearing ghost grinned at her from the doorway, before vanishing into thin air, she knew she was making the right choice. _I'll make the world truly beautiful, Flash,_ she thought to him. _That's a promise._

* * *

 **AN: Thank you so much if you stuck around to read this! I've mainly been posting this over on AO3 (as QueerCosette if you want to check out any of my other stuff, although by other stuff I literally only mean my _On Se Sent Comme Par Magie_ series, a Les Mis Winx Club AU. Sorry for the shameless self-promotion, now back to the AN) and I completely forgot I was posting it here too. Seriously though, thanks for reading if you made it this far. I love you!**


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